


Another Time

by KisekiMa



Series: Tohsaka Team [3]
Category: Fate/Apocrypha, Fate/Grand Order, Fate/stay night & Related Fandoms
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-05-14
Updated: 2017-07-12
Packaged: 2018-10-31 14:31:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 17
Words: 51,072
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10901298
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KisekiMa/pseuds/KisekiMa
Summary: One of the possible timelines. Kirei Kotomine had stolen two relics from Tokiomi Tohsaka. Rin received Archer as the last gift from her father, who ended the Fourth Grail War without unnecessary bloodshed. She intended to participate in the next War, but an enemy Servant attacked her long before it started... "The Only Thing You Can Change" spin-off.





	1. Prologue: The Darkest Hour

_"_ _I am hopelessly in love_

_with a memory. An echo_

_from another time,_

_another place."_

/Michel Foucault/

* * *

**Prologue: The Darkest Hour**

_And so her Servant appeared in a brief burst of bright light - the gorgeous entity made of pure magic._

* * *

"For the elements, silver and iron.

For the foundation, stone and the Archduke of Pacts.

And for the ancestor, my great master, Schweinorg..."

The basement of Tohsaka residence, where ones of the most powerful ley lines in Fuyuki crossed, again became the stage for Servant summoning. But Rin was not happy or even excited about it.

The Fifth Grail War has not yet started, but Tohsaka was already defeated. Just like that. They were attacked, by an enemy Servant, and they could not possibly win this fight.

Rin's Servant knew he could not win, but at least tried to take the enemy with him. And now he was gone, her Archer, her protector, her best friend…

It was not normal. Servants are not this strong. It was chaos incarnated. As a Master she could read his abilities with ease. They were a bit more than average normally, but then this thing went on rampage and started to be truly terrifying. Tohsaka could not even imagine how much mana this kind of Servant needs during a fight. His Master must be extremely powerful to provide it.

"Close the gates of the four directions.

Come forth from the Crown and follow the forked road leading to the Kingdom."

Archer lured the enemy out of the mansion… If he couldn't manage to do it, house would be most likely completely destroyed right now. Rin would probably be dead too. But still…

_Archer, how could you leave me like that? You promised…_

"Fill, fill, fill, fill, fill.

Repeat five times.

But when each is filled, destroy it."

Rin's mother was trying to be strong and support her daughter, but she was crying too. Then Aoi told Rin about the promise she made with Archer, their secret, a kind of emergency exit. Servant insisted on preparing the final gift for his Master, to be used only in case of the worst possible scenario.

This small box was the only thing he left for her. A note inside: 'You've always wanted Saber, so good luck, Rin.' And some bloodstained trash. This tiny, dry thing really could be of any use as a relic?

It was worth trying. The Grail still wanted Tohsaka as one of Masters. Rin's father wanted her to participate. Archer wanted to give her a new Servant to protect her. And she wanted to avenge Archer, so she prepared for the ritual when the time came.

"Set.

Heed my words.

My will creates your body and your sword creates my destiny.

If you heed the Grail's call and obey my will and reason, then answer me!"

At this moment a strong wind came from the summoning circle, magical energy was swirling fiercely there. Spell was working perfectly, but Rin was too sad to concentrate. Tears were flowing down her cheeks and she did not even try to stop them.

_Archer... I needed you to be my sword, not shield… How could you…?_

"I hereby swear…

That I shall be all the good in the world.

That I shall defeat all evil in the world.

Thou, Seventh Heaven, clad in the three great words of power,

come forth from the circle of binding, Guardian of the Scales!"

And so her Servant appeared in a brief burst of bright light - the gorgeous entity made of pure magic.

He was tall, maybe even a little taller than Archer, his figure somehow similar too. But this Heroic Spirit was wearing a strange, medieval-like armor.

And a big damn sword on his back!

"S-saber?"

The man stared at her, surprised, a little bit of hesitation in his blue eyes.

"Forgive me for disappointing you, but… not this time. A Rider. This is the first time in Rider class for me. But, as you can see, I have a sword and I know how to use it."

Tohsaka was inspecting him carefully, reading his basic skills and potential. It was… promising. Not to mention, that he had some kind of an ancient aura around him. Even not knowing Servant's name yet, Rin was sure that she's got one of the most powerful Heroic Spirits. The only reason he was not Saber must have been that this class was already occupied.

But… His silver-grey hair, his dyed brown skin, perfect composure and mild exterior reminded Rin of Archer and it was too much to bear. She lowered her head and wiped away the tears.

Her newly summoned Servant looked lost and embarrassed, when he spoke.

"I'm sorry, Master. I did not expect to be such a disappointment for you." He bowed, in a knightly manner. "But I promise I'll do what I can to make you change your mind, if you'll accept my service."

"No, it's not…" Tohsaka took a deep breath and looked boldly into his eyes. "It's… a personal loss. I'm the one to be sorry. I, Rin Tohsaka, am glad to have you as my Servant in this Grail War."

She reached out her hand, and Rider accepted, revealing his true name to form the contract.

Her eyes widened after this sudden revelation. Archer really did the job to find a perfect replacement, to keep her safe. It was like she's already won this war!

But, deep inside her heart, she suspected that even possible victory will have now an odd, bitter taste for her.


	2. Nothing Personal

_"_ _Told you, Master. I will not disappoint you."_

* * *

"Your mad dog seems to be calm today," the golden-haired Servant noticed, leisurely sipping wine.

Kotomine glanced over his shoulder and smiled. His Berserker was sitting on the floor in Japanese way, like a resting samurai from traditional woodprint. His head was lowered, a white forelock covered his eyes. It could look like a perfect picture of meditating warrior, if Servant would not be in thick metal chains attached to the wall.

He was not a typical Berserker, for sure. They usually were like a walking mountains of muscles, charging ahead and not able to think of any tactics. This Servant was well fitted to melee combat, no doubt, just one look at his muscular arms and back was enough to tell, but… He was not built like someone who depends in battle only on blunt force. Guy seemed to be made of iron, tough and deadly, but also slim and fast. At first glance he could be taken for a Lancer, at least when he was resting in chains like this.

"Yes, we get along well, since I've learned how to restrain him."

"Restrain? I thought that Berserkers are powerful because of their madness. So what's the purpose in keeping him calm?"

"This one is somehow abnormal. When he's calm, he can act even as a scout. But when he's raging… Well… You don't want to know. It's like two personalities fighting inside his head."

"Oh? So you say that this thing is actually thinking, Kirei?" Archer's smile was full of contempt and sense of superiority.

"I'm sure of it. Moreover, I suppose that he's able to speak, but doesn't want to. Or maybe concentrating is too difficult for him. But I have a feeling that he understands more than he wants to show."

"The little cheater then?" King of Heroes stood up and took a closer look at chained Heroic Spirit. A wide smile appeared on his face, when he was examining the prisoner, like he just found a new toy.

Berserker seemed to be perfectly calm now. But Gilgamesh could bet that this extreme composure was a part of his madness. And found it even more amusing because of that.

"So, these bindings are cutting off mana…"

Gilgamesh touched the chains, making them rattle annoyingly. Berserker did not react to this sound in any visible way, like he was sleeping.

"Yes, mostly. Right now I can barely feel any cost of his materialization. And I added some extra rites based on Command Seals. Being under their influence for about two years, he's perfectly tamed already. It's impossible for him to disobey me. "

"Oh, you keep surprising me, Kirei." Archer praised his Master honestly. "But it's boring when he's not moving. Make him entertain me."

It was not a request but the king's order. Kotomine laughed. It was good to know that Servant with this level of Clairvoyance and magical knowledge found Berserker interesting and able to put up a decent fight against him.

"I would like to see you playing with him, but I cannot risk any damage. He's useful. His only defect is that he's already too insane to shift into spirit form without the Command Seal. Berserker, stand up."

Chained warrior reacted automatically, short and simple orders were the best to control him. He stood up smoothly and glanced at the other Servant with no emotion or interest, like a killing machine.

"But you can take a walk with us and see him in action, King of Heroes." Kotomine also stood up, preparing to leave. "It's about time. We're going to greet our special guest from abroad tonight."

* * *

"I think I'm getting too old for this…"

"That's why it's me, not you, who's running around the city, following your daughter, Kiritsugu."

The man, once known as Mage Killer, smiled bitterly to himself. He would not expect to be back in Fuyuki after all these years, even in his wildest dreams. But, when her Command Seals appeared, Illya decided to participate in the Grail War and he could not just let her go without any support, could he? She was his little snow-white princess, after all.

But he decided to keep his presence in Japan a secret, helping Illya from distance, covering her back. First reason was that he just did not want his daughter to die. Second reason was… more complicated. They just could not live in harmony with Illya's Servant and Kiritsugu had no time for meaningless disputes.

"What's with this silence?" Something was crackling in the earphone, distorting the sound of Maiya's voice. "Are you implying that I'm old too? It's a rude thing to say to a woman."

"This is exactly why I'm not saying anything."

"Bastard. Old bastard." She added a special accent to 'old' on purpose.

All cameras were set, monitors and communication were working perfectly. Kiritsugu sat down in this small command centre and started to view the papers and video records.

"So, Maiya… Have you checked Tohsaka's mansion?"

"I was there yesterday, no presence of a Servant but someone raised a barrier around the place."

Kiritsugu was not surprised, he knew Tohsaka's tactics well. He looked at the picture of Rin attached to documentation. She was the most powerful opponent, probably the only one who could be a threat for Illya. Revealing identity of her Servant will be the key to victory.

"We must keep observing this residence. And what about Matous?"

"One of these kids is a Master, no doubt," Maiya whispered to the communicator. "Or maybe both. They seem to be too weak to even supply a Servant with mana."

"Don't underestimate old fox Zouken, Maiya." Kiritsugu was serious, remembering Berserker and all the troubles he caused Saber once. "Let's hope they did not summon Caster, Assassin or Berserker. It would be troublesome."

He sighed, a little bit of frustration in this sound. They needed more information quickly. Desperately. The only certain thing was that the mage from the Association, Bazett Fraga McRemitz, who summoned a Lancer, will arrive to Japan today, to meet with mysterious ally. That's why she was now observed, along with the other magus from the organization, with unknown Servant.

"What's worrying you, Kiritsugu?"

"The Einzberns."

They had no single information about the third family – not a clue.

"Maybe they're not participating this time?"

"The tree founding families always have their representatives in the War. So something is wrong…"

Kiritsugu paused, thinking.

"Is it possible that the Grail recognizes Ilya as Einzbern Master?" – Maiya asked after a short while of silence.

"I have no idea," he replied honestly and reached out for a sandwich.

Something was telling him that chaos is coming, even worse than ten years ago.

To think that Illya intended to just walk around with Saber and defeat other Servants one by one in fair duels… Kiritsugu could not believe it. It was much too dangerous for his little princess, even if she indeed was the strongest magus.

"Kiritsugu, Master of Lancer has arrived." Maiya's message brought him back to reality. "And someone is with her, a man, dressed in black, like a…" – she hesitated, disbelief in her voice when she started to speak again -… priest or something…"

Magus Killer tensed, struck by some extremely bad feelings.

"Maiya, give me the visual."

A sandwich fell down from his hand, when he recognized the priest who was walking next to Bazett, with a friendly smile on his face.

"Maiya, keep an eye on them, I will be there soon."

* * *

"Thank you, Master, for bringing me here. I may not have the eyesight of a bowman, but the view is stunning anyway."

Rin nodded, angry because of her own stupidity. She had to fight her old habits and accept that this Heroic Spirit was different from her Archer in almost every way. Ten years together was a long time, but now the new situation required new tactics. She needed to know her newly summoned Servant, learn to trust him. And, most importantly, do not be unfair and stop comparing him to Archer.

They were sitting on the roof of the highest building in Fuyuki, Tohsaka's favourite observatory point, after a long walk through the city. Rider was patient and seemed obedient right now, he was answering all questions willingly and politely.

After all day of reconnaissance and talking they concluded, that the worst possible enemy for Rin's Servant was Assassin or Archer, especially if Rider's true name would be revealed. Considering his skills and Noble Phantasms, he was a worthy opponent for all the classes specialized in melee combat. Actually, he probably had nothing to fear from them, even with his identity discovered.

_This guy is a walking fortress, honestly. Archer must have been truly fixated on protection…_

Rin sighed heavily, looking at the streets down below from the edge of the roof.

"What's wrong, Master?"

"It's nice to be up here, but the thought of going down all the stairs again is not fun at all."

Rider smiled, standing up.

"I think I can do something about it", he said and touched the blue stone embedded in the hilt of his sword. "Come, Grani, my old friend,"

A big and beautiful stallion materialized next to him, his shining hair had the same shade of silver-grey as Rider's. It was obviously a warhorse, brave and powerful enough to face even a dragon.

"This is Grani, the prince among horses, descendant of Sleipnir, which was Odin's own mount." Rider was gently caressing horse's nostrils. Bond he shared with the stallion, an obvious mutual trust and respect, cheered Tohsaka up. She could not hide her smile. This warrior must have been a really nice guy to make this proud creature loyal to him.

"Nice to meet you, Grani," she said, while her Servant jumped onto the saddle. He pulled Rin up and soon the horse jumped into the night air, flying higher than Tohsaka could imagine.

It was a completely new experience, to cross the night sky on the back of this powerful creature. They were moving fast, enough to outdistance a motorcycle, although Grani was not even galloping yet.

"Yeah, Rider class is not so bad, after all." Rin smiled, admiring the speed and amazing view.

Her Servant chuckled and it was a short, pleasant sound.

"Told you, Master. I will not disappoint you."

* * *

It was raining, when the blue-haired Knight of the Lance rushed to his Master's side, sensing danger. He almost made it. Almost, because another Servant attacked him halfway, a strange guy with black stains on his skin, armed with thin rapier-like blades, five in each hand.

Lancer had no time to waste for this unexpected enemy, so he tried to stab him quickly or just pass by. He soon realized, that it's not possible with this strange warrior, surrounded by shadow-like aura. Blades in his hands were like claws and no matter how many times Cú Chulainn smashed them, this guy still had new ones. He was answering properly for Lancer's every blow, not letting him move forward. Moreover, he was fast and strong enough to make it.

"Berserker, huh?" That was the only reasonable explanation for his raw abilities to be this high without a legend behind him – blue warrior had not ever heard of such hero. "Who are you?"

Another powerful attack was his only answer.

Cú Chulainn snarled, irritated. He was like a wild blue panther but it looked like he just met a stubborn wolverine.

And creator of this mess, the priest with sadistic expression on his face, was just standing there, watching the pool of blood, spreading slowly on the ground.

"It's enough, Berserker," he said after a short while, sure that there's no hope for wounded woman. "He's going to vanish anyway."

His Servant withdrew immediately and followed the priest without complaints or any other reaction, like a machine. The only thing he seemed to do of his own will was a quick look over his shoulder, one single glance at dying woman, nothing more.

Cú Chulainn ignored him and kneeled next to his Master. He was drawing healing runes in a great hurry, but he knew it was not enough. She will need further medical treatment, and he won't last materialized in this world longer than for two hours…

 _This cursed priest was right_ , Servant thought. _It's been already decided._

But still... giving up like this was just not like him.

"Hey!" Lancer turned around to see a man in black coat, who was standing in the rain, a gun in his hand. "You know that she still can be saved, right? Make a contract with me and I'll do what I can to help this woman."

That was unexpected, but also tempting. This brave woman believed in Lancer's abilities and did not deserve to die like this. And it was a Servant's duty to protect his Master, right?

"And if I refuse?"

"I'll just let her die here," the strange man replied quickly and honestly.

Lancer shook his head, visibly displeased.

"I think I don't like you, old man."

Kiritsugu shrugged.

"It's nothing personal, really. A deal is a deal, that's all. And you have nothing to lose, right?"

"Right." Lancer smiled, his red eyes were burning with a strange emotion. "I can stab you later if you won't keep the promise." He winked and reach out his hand to this weird magus. "Just hurry up."

"I'm glad that we understand each other." Kiritsugu smiled when Command Seals appeared on his right hand, in a shape of a spear with three bleeding thorns.


	3. Shards of Glass

_It remembered her how fragile and defenseless humans were against Servants._

* * *

"To think that you're trying to bypass the Grail's summoning system… Are you so desperate, Einzberns?"

She have seen a lot and knew even more than she would like to know. Even from her realm between the worlds she was able to see a distant and even future events. She could feel the call of Einzbern's magic right now. It looked like they strengthened their summoning circle to reach the Throne of Heroes forcefully. A bold and insane idea, indeed.

She laughed, playing with a strand of her long, purple hair. It won't work. Their magic was just too weak to bind a Servant, especially additional one. It was against the rules of the Grail War, no Heroic Spirit could answer this call. Only some kind of a demon or other freak could react to this magic…

Or a very bored queen from the Land of Shadows. Especially if she had some business in the outside world.

"All right, I will give you a helping hand, then."

She visualized some runes and drew them straight in the air, creating the gate and connecting it with the passage built by Einzberns. This link was fragile and unstable, but still worthy to give it a try, so she grabbed her spear and let the spells work.

It was not a pleasant sensation, to be pulled out from one reality, torn to pieces and materialized in another place. It was awful, she had to admit, but worth the effort in the end. She found herself within the magic barrier, in the summoning circle, surrounded by some white, red-eyed 'people'. The one standing before her, old magus with a piercing gaze, was definitely their leader.

"So, you're a Lancer?" It did not sound like a question, to be honest. But this man, expressionless beyond imagination, could be even joking right now and no one would notice any change. His white beard, like a frozen waterfall, was making the magus look even more inhuman. "I'm Jubstacheit von Einzbern, the one who summoned you. Give me your name, Servant."

She was trying to hide her amusement and focused on the barriers around the summoning circle. They might stop fully a spiritual creature, but she was not dead in full meaning of the word. Some runes should destroy it quickly, so she started to draw them discreetly on the floor…

Jubstacheit von Einzbern must have noticed something weird in her appearance, and he was slowly understanding that summoning went not as smoothly as he planned. Actually, he should have realized sooner that her aura was different from any Servant, but his own protective barriers were stopping him from discovering the truth.

_Isn't it ironic – to be fooled by your own protection spell?_

"Answer me, Servant. Or I'll force you to obey."

Her red eyes were shining, when she stood up and dispelled the barrier with a single word. Energy blast hit all the Einzberns around, forcing them to step back and cover their eyes.

"I will not serve anyone, especially some weird golem!"

In the blink of an eye the red spear pierced the chest of the old man, staining his flawless white robe with blood.

* * *

"Master, may I ask you something?"

Rin was walking down the street with her magic detecting compass in hand, searching the strange sigils which appeared last night in the area. Her Servant assisted her in spirit form.

"Sure. And you can call me by my name, if you want to."

"Thank you, Master." Another formal response. Tohsaka was starting to get tired of this. "Master… may I know what is your wish?"

She stopped, struck by this sudden question, and looked around. They were almost in the park near the red bridge. The night was calm but clouds were covering the sky totally, so it was much darker than usual and every shadow, especially coming from the trees, looked suspicious.

"Master? Is something wrong?"

"No. I just… I don't know my wish yet," Rin replied honestly. "I want to find the Servant who killed my Archer. I think that I will consider this matter after winning the war."

"So…" Rider's voice was somehow colder than usual, like he was trying to hide his displeasure, but failed. "Revenge is your motive and you fight just to win, right?"

"No, it's not like that." Tohsaka sighed and ran her fingers through her hair, thinking, searching for the best words to describe her feelings. "I do not seek revenge, truly. I just want to face him." She shrugged. "And there's nothing I may want, which I can't accomplish myself. I do not need the Grail to do my work. And you, Siegfried? What's your wish?"

"I…" He hesitated, but decided to speak his mind eventually. It would be not fair to keep his secrets after Rin answered so honestly. "You see, Master… I always did what people wanted me to do. I answered their requests, mostly. I've never managed to do something just because it was right. Or just because I wanted to do it."

"I see." Tohsaka gave him a beautiful, wide smile. "Now I know why you're so stiff… You may start making your wish come true at any moment, you know? And it won't kill you if sometimes you do something you like."

She could feel that Rider tensed, confused. He must have been pushing himself too hard when he was alive, totally dedicated to his 'hero of justice' job. Not that she did not meet someone just like him already…

"So, what do you do for fun? What do you want to do tomorrow?"

Siegfried did not know how to react. Truly, it was the most unexpected question and the fact, that he could not find any answer, was even worse.

What was making him happy? Seeing other people happy after their wishes were fulfilled, this was it. But it was certainly not a 'doing for fun' thing Tohsaka asked about.

She found his embarrassment very amusing and somehow cute. So this was the way to corner an extremely famous legendary soul? Too easy.

"Master, I…"

But Rin could not hear the answer, noticing a strange blue flash on the sky. A magical arrow? No, not it, but was coming fast, too fast to react.

Her world shrank suddenly to the tip of the spear coming straight to her heart.

* * *

"Saber?"

"Yes, Master." Arturia raised her sword. "This man is a Servant."

The swordsman was beautiful, Berserker noticed, looking at woman's bright face and her golden hair. He recognized this valiant aura and it gave him an unexpected heartache. Her little Master, with white hair and red yes, seemed familiar too.

_I've seen their faces before… but I can't recognize them. It's like a blank page with sadness behind…_

_What's wrong with my head? I cannot focus. I cannot catch any thought._

He came here on purpose, no doubt, this disgusting priest commanded him to do so. And he finished just standing on the road near the old cemetery, admiring the view. He must have been in this city before, in this particular place. His head already started to hurt from overthinking this matter.

Saber tensed, alarmed by her opponent's empty expression. She moved forward, her sword in defensive position.

"Who are you? A Lancer? Or Rider?" A strange light in Arturia's eyes, her instinct of a warrior must have told her to be cautious. "Pick up your weapon or get out from the way."

She lost his attention at: 'Who are you?', making him kind of fixated on this single question.

Who was he? Why his head was full of shattered pieces of junk? It was like a broken glass, leaving painful scratches every time he touched it.

Yet even this question vanished quickly and only his Master's order remained. Servant could remember this command only because it was supported by magic. Otherwise, it would get away soon, like anything else. His mind was broken and leaky, resistance was pointless.

_I don't want to fight them._

_I want to make them scream with pain._

_I don't want to hurt them, I want to recall the names behind these faces._

_I will kill them, slowly, making them regret that they've ever crossed paths with me._

But all these thoughts were only a shards of glass, useless, but still able to torture him with their sharp edges.

He could not stand it anymore, something was tearing him apart. All he wanted now was to stop this madness and pain. And there was a cure he knew would work. It always did.

A clear sound of metal hitting metal pierced the night air, when Berserker attacked, head on, like a mindless machine, finally free of raging scraps of meaningless memories.

* * *

Rin had no time to scream or move, facing this sudden attack, a smudge of red and blue light coming at her with enormous speed. It remembered her how fragile and defenseless humans were against Servants.

Rider materialized immediately, pushed her back and took the blow on his sword, raised just in time.

"What kind of Lancer would attack so dishonorably?" – he asked, forcing his blue-haired adversary to jump back.

"Oh?" Cú Chulainn gave him a wide smile. "It was your fault that you were hiding all the time. But you're here already, so let's fight like Servants should. Shall we… Saber?"

Yes, someone with so gigantic sword on his back must have been a Saber class Servant, not to mention his majestic aura. Even Kiristugu, watching them from hiding, was confused.

_Two Sabers in this war? Tohsaka cheated somehow? Who else this guy might be? What's even worse, he's powerful…_

Lancer's order was to force Tohsaka's Servant to manifest and show as much of his secrets as possible. If Lancer feels that he's able to defeat the enemy, he may try to do so. Emiya was glad that he added the last line to this command. This guy was dangerous, his defeat - a priority. Kiritsugu was observing Rin, ready to shoot her while Lancer kept her Servant busy.

The swordsman seemed to be slower than Lancer, his weapon, heavy and unwieldy, was making the difference even more visible. Yet he managed to easily make up for this disadvantage with his technique, highly surpassing every warrior Kiritsugu had ever seen, and reminding him only of Arturia's fighting style.

Both Servants had almost the same range and combat experience, which was making their clash even more interesting. It was difficult to believe that their fierce exchange of blows lasted only for few minutes and ended with no single scratch.

"Splendid," Lancer said honestly, jumped back and prepared his weapon for final strike. The spear started to shine with a strange red light and mana gathering around its wielder was a clear sign of Noble Phantasm coming. "Worthy opponent, at last! But my Master ordered to try defeat you, so do not resent me."

The silver-haired warrior was only standing still, facing his enemy with unexpected calmness, his eyes focused on the spear. There was no time to activate his own Noble Phantasm in response, and it was not a good weapon against such a fast and agile opponent. Rider even lowered his sword, evidently not intending to block the upcoming strike.

_He's trying to take it head on? Is he mad?_ Kiritsugu's eyes widened and, after one glance at Tohsaka, he noticed that the girl seemed even more surprised.

"Gáe Bolg!"

A red light blinded Rin when the spear went towards Rider's chest in a zigzag course. She stepped ahead, fear and confusion on her face. But her Servant was still standing, his head lowered a little and hand pressed to his chest.

"What… what have just happened?" - Tohsaka said aloud the question bothering everyone here.

"A paradox, Master," Siegfried answered with a strange smile. He was still avoiding unnecessary movements and let healing magic work. "This Noble Phantasm of yours always pierces the heart, right, Lancer? Even with an unbreakable object on the way, it still hits the target, ignoring all the rules of the universe. It should have not gone through, you know? But, fortunately for me, it's only a scratch. Two types of magic have reacted in the most unexpected way, it seems…"

Lancer frowned, irritated and amazed at the same time.

"Who are you?" – he asked in a harsh voice.

"I'm not stopping you from guessing, Child of Light, but I will not make it easier for you."

Cú Chulainn continued this conversation, but Kiritsugu was not listening anymore, targeting Tohsaka with his rifle. If Lancer could not defeat this Servant easily, he would be a threat to Saber later, so taking down the Master was the only safe choice. Emiya had a clean shot and pushed the trigger…

At this moment the swordsman stared straight at him and rushed to cover Rin.

"Look out, Master, a sniper!"

And then someone else attacked the silver-haired Servant, aiming for his unprotected back. A strange chain-dagger was coming from behind the trees like a deadly silver arrow.

But it stopped, blocked halfway by the red lance.

"Assassin scum, huh?" Cú Chulainn did not hide his disapproval. "Come, join us. I promise to go easy on you this time."

"Lancer…" Rin looked utterly surprised because of this unexpected help from the enemy. The blue warrior gave her a cheerful, wild smile.

"What? It's rare to have some decent fight these days. I'm looking forward to our next duel, Saber."

"The pleasure is all mine, Lancer." Siegfried nodded, a thin smile brightened his face. But he was still looking at hidden Kiritsugu and it was a silent warning. He doesn't like attacking Masters, but he will make an exception, if the mage killer decides to shoot again.

"I'm going after the scum. Take care, you both," Cú Chulainn said and jumped toward the trees, a smudge of blue light. Kiritsugu also retreated this time, having a lot of facts to think over.

"It's not good," Rin said after a moment of heavy silence, her fists clenched in anger. "Too many eyes were watching us."

"It seems that things are going to be brutal, Master." Rider placed his sword back in his place, he was completely healed already but visibly tired. "Next time we will be prepared."

* * *

_Modern clothes are nice_ , the purple haired woman thought, walking through the airport hall with a small suitcase. Her high heels were tapping rhythmically on the floor, making all men on sight stare at her until they hit the wall or other obstacle on their way.

Things were getting interesting. She learned a lot about current situation only by penetrating Einzbern's archives. She sighed at the memory of leaving the castle floor wet from blood. She didn't want to kill these poor creatures, but they really insisted...

_So, to summarize the facts…_

The Einzberns let the best of his vessels be stolen by a traitor magus from the previous war – it was pathetic enough. Then they chose one of their homunculi to be a Master, but a very uncommon Servant answered the call. Soon after they both left the castle, Servant took control over his Master and vanished. Even more pathetic, right?

Their incompetence was frightening. But not only the Einzberns messed up with this Grail War. There was no supervisor, only the false priest who pretended to be one. And a very abnormal Servant was summoned already, but it seemed that he had not discovered his potential yet. No wonder that the Grail itself reacted with one of his emergency tactics.

She sighed again. To think that her favourite pupil would be caught up in this mess…

_Don't worry,_ _Sétanta_ _. I'm coming._

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> About Armor of Fafnir vs. Gáe Bolg – the case is complicated and I've read a lot about this possible duel. Barbed Spear that Pierces with Death NP is B ranked, so it could not pierce the armor technically, but it always strikes the heart before it is even thrown (through Siegfried's weak point, maybe, or it just appears in the heart, who knows?), so I decided that being slightly wounded is a fair outcome. However, it's my personal, subjective choice.


	4. Reasons to Fight

_He knew that exposing his back to this particular enemy was extremely stupid, but he could feel that this decision, which came straight from his heart, was right._

_Even if it was his last decision in this war._

* * *

"Masters, the identities of two Servants were revealed this night."

A beautiful woman with long, violet hair and an eye cover materialized in one of the rooms in Matou residence. A boy whose body was covered in bandages smiled to her gently, but the other Master, a girl with purple hair, shivered unwittingly, still not used to Assassin's presence.

Sakura was really frightened when she first met her Servant. It was not the personality or abilities of this Heroic Spirit that were particularly scary but its class seemed… unexpectedly unsuited to her. In contrast to others, tactics of Assassin seemed somehow shameful and inappropriate. And killing Masters instead of Servants was impossible to accept for Sakura, so it was the first thing her Servant was forbidden to do.

Surprisingly, the woman accepted Sakura's order with relief and soon revealed her true nature of a caring, kindhearted person. She was also very calm and obedient, so it did not take long for both Matou Masters to trust her skills and advices.

Sakura realized soon that class is nothing more than a container, but still Assassin's talent to appear out from nowhere was extremely annoying for the girl.

Assassin told everything she had observed during Lancer clash with the unknown Servant and added some strange revelations about Saber's duel with Berserker.

"So... what should we do next?" – Sakura asked after a long while of silence, when all of them were analyzing the news in the privacy of their own minds.

Assassin spoke first, and it sounded like she already decided to follow her own plan.

"I think it would be wise to secretly support Tohsaka's Servant. Because he's easy to defeat for me… and a threat to anyone else. He'll be our sword."

Sakura remembered old Zouken's reaction after her new Servant had been summoned – the magus was truly overjoyed and gave the girl a lecture on using the full potential of this class. It was somehow frightening, to become a director of present events and a scriptwriter of future ones… She understood well that it was certainly the best course of action in these circumstances, but she still did not like it. Tohsaka's blood in her veins was pushing her to take the front line in the battle.

_Gathering information is the most important part of war, but there's no way to win using only them, right?_

"I see, so he will get rid of other Servants for us and then we will eliminate him?" Shirou rubbed his chin, thinking. "Nice plan."

"Are you sure that he is the famous Dragon-Blooded Knight?" Sakura was either more hesitant or she just did not want to make any serious tactical mistake.

"After seeing him in action, I'm sure, Master." Her composure and tone of voice left no place for doubts. "His swordsmanship has long since surpassed mankind… I haven't seen Archer yet, but for now this one and Saber are the strongest, equally strong perhaps. Maybe Berserker too, but there's something really strange about him. We need to observe him more, in my opinion."

"Sure. Keep observing then. And you may support Rin Tohsaka… within reason."

"Thank you, Masters. I will bring you victory."

_Even if I will have to kill everyone in this war._

She did not say it, but both Matou kids could easily read her intentions from her overprotective tone of voice. Assassin persistently repeated that she had no personal need for the Grail, but it seemed that she had a clear goal in this war.

She just did not want these kids to be hurt and suffer anymore.

* * *

"Are you sure it was Berserker, Master?"

The white-haired girl nodded, an absolute certainty painted on her face.

"I'm sure, I could read his status clearly during your duel." She was fighting with a pack of nice looking jelly candies, trying to open it. After successfully ending this important operation, she put three of the most colorful jellies in her mouth at once. "Sooooo goooood! This is my new favourite thing!" She giggled. "But why do you keep asking me this, Saber?"

Arturia sighed, visibly worried.

"I've already seen Berserkers with amazing fighting skills, but no single one able to read the situation so perfectly or plan his moves in advance. And..." Saber stopped, remembering something. Or rather someone, from the Fourth Grail War, who used to rely on similar abilities in battle.

"And?"

"And no Berserker would retreat on his own. I'm sure that there was no order for him to do so."

Ilya nodded again, she'd already come to the same conclusion. This Servant predicted or knew the consequences of Saber using her ultimate Excalibur attack, and withdrew just in time to avoid them.

Another jellies disappeared in girl's mouth, making her extremely content.

"You can defeat him, Saber?" – she asked suddenly, in oddly cheerful manner.

"I WILL defeat him, Ilya." Saber smiled, trying to hide how much this question hurt her pride. "It would be nice to know his identity or Noble Phantasm first, but not necessarily."

"I see… Someone here just can't stand failure, huh?" She poke Arturia in the arm, laughing. "Don't worry, I will soon track him, so you will repay him. You're the strongest, after all."

Saber only smiled in response, determined to win at all costs this time. She will not allow anyone to take the Grail from her again.

* * *

A beautiful young girl entered the church, bowed with respect and folded her hands in prayer. She had a pale, almost white skin and something in her appearance seemed inhuman. She not only had the aura of a powerful Servant, but her body also was most likely artificial, alike to the Einzbern homunculus.

But their homunculi have white hair and red eyes… Eyes of the girl were in the color of amethysts and her long braid of hair was almost golden. It seemed that magic of the Grail started to affect the host of this unusual possession.

After finishing her prayers, the girl looked around, like detecting something. The object of her concern was sitting on the floor in the corner of the church, perfectly chained, and probably asleep.

"You are…" She covered her mouth with her hand, utterly shocked, and walked up to him. Her angelic face brightened with compassion and kindness. After a short while, she reached out her hand and gently caressed Berserker's white hair. "What should I do with you?"

"Berserker, what are you doing? You should stand up and greet our guest properly."

Kotomine came in from the side corridor, his hands behind his back, a thin, cruel smile on his face. His Servant raised from the ground mechanically, free from chains after one short command of the priest.

"I understand now." The girl did not lose her cool or courage, but she stepped back and materialized her armor, holy battle flag and sword, just in case. "You are the one who pretends to be the supervisor of this War. But you're breaking the rules instead of guarding them. You're defiling this holy place…" She glanced at Berserker, at his empty gaze and could not stand the view. "You have no respect even for your own Servant."

"Oh? Actually, he was the one who tried to kill me only a moment after I summoned him. I was extremely forgiving to let him stay by my side and temper his madness."

Ruler frowned a little, disgusted by these cynical lies. It was not compassion but cruelty, which resulted in making this Heroic Spirit even more broken than he already was.

"Anyway, I will not let a Ruler wander around, messing with my plans. So begone, foolish girl!"

* * *

"Master, is she really trying to fight this beast with a flag?"

Rider was standing next to Rin, with his hands crossed and very unusual expression on his face. They were both watching the fight in the church from the open door of side entrance.

"So it seems. And she's doing well. But this priest is going to exorcise her while she's busy with Berserker."

"And I suppose that we're going to interfere, because two bad guys attacking one cute girl is not funny at all?"

"Yes. And because everyone who fights this Servant is our ally."

A very dangerous light appeared in Tohsaka's eyes. It was him, no doubt. Tracking the enemy with her amethyst owls was a hard task, but she made it at last. And gathered some other information in the process. Master of Lancer was extremely cautious, so Rin lost one of the scouts before she could see anything helpful to localize his hideout. The one she had sent to Ryuudou Temple also was destroyed, so they had another location to investigate.

_But first I want to face this Berserker. I must, or I will never be at peace with myself again._

"Master, why strengthen only your arms and legs?" Siegfried was staring at her while she was preparing to the battle. "Your head and spine need protection, don't you think?"

She froze, surprised by this unexpected but apt remark.

"I've never thought about it," she replied honestly, thinking why she had never come up with this idea, but Rider did, just like that. It was probably because of his fighting style, different than Archer's. Siegfried was using more strength and he rarely bothered to dodge, thanks to his armor.

"I won't let you go there, Master, until you'll be well protected. So please cast these spells on the most important parts of your body." Rider was talking like a commander and Tohsaka did not really like this tone of voice. He soon realized that he's not in charge there, and added politely: "Please. And forgive me, these are my old habits."

"Why are you so stubborn this time?"

Siegfried rolled his eyes, but did not lose his patience yet.

"Because our enemy there is Berserker. It means that you need to predict unpredictable to survive, Master…"

"I know, stop it!" Rin blushed a little. It was almost like being reprimanded by Archer, long ago… "Fine, I'll do what you ask. And let's hurry."

The silver-haired knight smiled gently and Tohsaka noticed that she started to really like this shy, hesitant smile.

* * *

"I will kill. I will let live. I will harm and heal. None will escape me. None will escape my sight.

Be crushed."

Kirei's voice echoed through the church, louder than the sounds of fighting. His chants visibly affected the girl, she was repelling Berserker's blows desperately, but she was losing strength with every word.

"I am light and relieve you of all your burdens."

"Bullshit," angry Tohsaka said and fired _Gandr_ at false priest, forcing him to stop the incantation. At the same moment, Siegfried's sword blocked Berserker's daggers, and mad warrior jumped back, waiting for new orders. "Are you ok?"

"Y-yes." Ruler was breathing heavily, but she did not hide behind Rider's back. "Thank you, Master of Rider. But please, do not fight in this holy place."

"Fight?" Kirei chuckled. "Miss Tohsaka is leaving soon. She values her life, after all."

"You!" Rin was too easy to provoke, but Siegfried did not criticize her this time, also irritated by Executor's malicious laugh.

"Kotomine, what's that supposed to mean? It's so loud in here… To think that you started a party and forgot to invite me."

Another Servant materialized next to Kirei, the golden-haired man with dangerous, red eyes. He looked amused, like a child, who finally found some companions to play with.

"Forgive me, Archer." Kirei smiled. "I did not suppose that you will find their company fascinating."

"We'll see."

Golden Servant raised his hand, firing several weapons at his totally surprised opponents.

Seeing what's happening, Siegfried decided to try to keep the secret of his armor safe as long as possible, and blocked the missiles with his sword. One or two broke through his defense, doing him no harm, as expected.

But Gilgamesh could not be fooled so easily.

"Oh?" Red eyes met blue eyes, and two Servants were trying to rate their chances of winning. "So I need to use some more valuable ones? Interesting."

Rider was totally focused on golden portals opened by Archer. He had no choice but to act defensively, his Master's safety was a priority right now. He could, probably, break through and engage this golden Servant in melee combat, but not with Rin so close behind.

_Master, I highly recommend you to withdraw now._

_No way! I won't leave you!_ Tohsaka was not open to negotiations this time. _Besides I must keep the priest busy or he'll use some dirty tricks against us._

"Tch!" Rider clenched his teeth, swallowing frustration and anger. So 'entertaining' Gilgamesh was his only task now. He would rather assist Rin, but he knew that he can't take his eyes off this golden Servant even for a second. After all, he will not help anyone with one of Archer's weapons stuck in his vulnerable back…

* * *

The situation in the church reached an impasse. Rin was bombarding Kotomine with spells from distance and he just kept dodging them, not even focused on this task. Rider was almost mechanically blocking Archer's missiles, but he could not keep waving his big and heavy sword for too long. Some weapons pierced through his armor, leaving annoying scratches. Gilgamesh was evidently enjoying this 'archery training' and hit Rider's legs on purpose, trying to immobilize him.

Ruler on the other hand, slowly started to gain an advantage over Berserker. Her opponent's attacks seemed halfhearted and warrior was not focused at all, glancing at Tohsaka with strange, insane expression on his face.

"Berserker, what have I told you? Ruler is your target."

But mad Servant, visibly fixated on Rin, only mumbled something and hit Ruler hard with his elbow. She was a small fry, irritating but meaningless for him now. The girl hit the wall and slumped to the floor, dazed and battered.

Berserker was not wasting time and attacked Tohsaka without a second thought. She reacted with magic and wounded him several times with _Gandr_ but it was not enough to stop him. He grabbed Rin by her neck and picked her up from the ground.

"Master!" – that was Rider's voice. He was desperately trying to free himself from numerous weapons which were almost nailing him down to the floor. His anger changed to wrath already and a wave of light blue energy burst from his exposed skin. Enraged, he destroyed all weapons with a single slash of his sword and stood up. He was terrifying, with murderous intent in his gaze and skin stained with blood from many minor wounds.

"Oh?" Gilgamesh tilted his head, amused. "A dragon? I think I have something for you in my treasury."

"Like I care…" Siegfried barely glanced at King of Heroes and rushed to his Master's side.

He knew that exposing his back to this particular enemy was extremely stupid, but he could feel that this decision, which came straight from his heart, was right.

Even if it was his last decision in this war.

Rin was fighting with all her might, trying to catch a breath, but Servant seemed to be totally insensitive to her desperate blows. Without strengthening spells, which she casted on her spine before the battle, she would be already dead.

Yet, even in this desperate situation, she could see something strange on his face. The way he was looking at her… This insane gaze. These eyes…

_Is he crying?_

And then she realized, her eyes widened in shock and heart stopped beating…

"A… Ar…?"

Suddenly Berserker freed Tohsaka from his deadly grasp and stepped back, breathing heavily.

"Berserker!" Kotomine's voice was full of anger and pain. "How dare you drain me?! You have other resources!"

With these words, a little pale priest retreated. His Servant kneeled on the ground, as if his energy was completely cut off, like a mechanical doll with empty batteries.

Rin was sitting no further than two meters from him, panting terribly and trying to see anything – her vision was still foggy after the fall. They looked equally miserable at this moment.

"Master, don't move!" Rider was already by Tohsaka's side, his great sword ready to cut off Berserker's head.

"No! Don't!" – she shouted, not really sure why she did it.

Siegfried's eyes narrowed, but he obeyed and did not waste time for unnecessary movements. Abandoning this kind of attack halfway was nearly impossible and someone less skilled would probably end hurting himself or everyone around while trying. Rider did not even think of stopping the blow, but he targeted the wall instead of enemy Servant. Fragments of bricks fell dangerously close to Rin's head. Warrior groaned painfully after this hard hit, yet still managed to turn away swiftly, with intention of facing and blocking all the weapons launched by King of Heroes.

But golden-haired girl returned to the battle and stood between fighting Servants. Her flag was stuck on the ground as the source of protecting barrier, which easily stopped Archer's weapons.

"Enough! I order you to stop fighting right now or I will use Command Seals on all of you!" But she was looking only at Gilgamesh while saying this. No fear or hesitation in her gaze, only pure determination. "You're defiling this holy place! If you still want to fight, do it outside the church. Fairly."

Siegfried did not react, ready to protect Rin. He was still watching Gilgamesh, wary of his every movement. Berserker, although able to move again, also had no intention to continue the fight and withdrew slowly to his Master. Archer muttered disdainfully and dispelled his portals.

"You're boring, mongrels. I will not go easy on you next time." And he vanished into spirit form, leaving only a bit of golden mist behind.

"My… that was… chaotic," Rin said, slowly standing up with Rider's assistance. She was still a little dizzy and shaken. "Anyway, we should get out of he…"

"Master, look."

At this moment golden-haired girl fainted and hit the floor.

"Great." Rin sighed. "Now we should take care of her. Just great."


	5. A Matter of Trust

_"_ _Ah… well…" Highly embarrassed Siegfried decided to make a tactical retreat and he vanished into spirit form._

* * *

_Another self-sacrificing moron_ , Rin thought, slowly waking up from her strange dream.

It was a dream full of battles… and requests. Some were selfish, others filled with despair. But the Hero answered them all, like he was already the Grail or something… A wish-granting machine, living up to people's expectations at the cost of his own heart.

_You know… you won't make anyone happy, if you are not happy in the first place. You must have something first and then you can share it, right? I'll teach you... Just wait for me to wake up._

After a long while Tohsaka opened her eyes at last and sighed heavily.

"No good… My head and neck hurt so muuuuch…" - she muttered, rolling over her bed. "Everything hurts! Even the parts of my body I had no idea that exist…"

"That's because Berserker almost smashed you against the wall, Master."

Rin tensed, surprised by this unexpected comment, and pulled the covers up to her neck.

"Siegfried! You've been here all the time?!"

"Of course. This is my duty to watch over my Master," he answered simply, no sign of guilt in his voice. He materialized, trying to not stare at Rin and make her feel more uncomfortable.

"And what about Ruler?" – she asked, just to break the awkward silence.

"Jeanne is resting in the guest room. She was too tired for a long talk, so I don't know anything new."

"I see." Tohsaka hesitantly sat on the corner of the bed, her bare feet slapped on the floor. "And you? Everything's all right?"

"I'm fine and already healed."

"No, I was thinking… you know…" This awful headache was not helping her at all and speaking up her mind was extremely difficult now. "Bothering you with taking care of two unconscious women and stuff…"

Rider crossed his arms, while taking a deep, long breath.

"I must admit that I don't feel very comfortable, nursing two young and attractive women," he replied with a thin smile. "I mean… I haven't had the chance to get used to this kind of situation."

"I see." Tohsaka tried to hide her smile - it was a vicious grin, and it could make Rider feel even more embarrassed than he already was. "Ouch, I can't even find my shoes…"

"Here, Master…"

He put something on the table near her bed: a pack of aspirin and a cup of coffee. Tohsaka had to admit that it smelled good.

"You made a coffee for me?"

"Well…" Siegfried blushed a little. "I've tried, really, but it tasted… awful. So I brought some from the vending machine. It's still awful, but better than made by me."

Rin could not hold back her smile anymore. Her Servant was a really kind person. A little twisted, maybe, but trustworthy for sure.

And because of that she was feeling extremely bad. Yesterday she betrayed his trust and put his life in danger with no rational reason.

"I know that our bond should be forged on the battlefield," she said. "And I failed this time. You've almost died because of my poor judgment."

Rider was looking deeply in her eyes, he was very serious and focused when he spoke.

"And you've almost died because of my poor skills. We will improve, Master. You'll see."

Tohsaka nodded, but his words did not make her feel any better. There was something cold in Rider's voice, an invisible wall between them, even higher than on the day of his summoning.

It was her fault. And she was determined to destroy this wall at all costs.

* * *

"Master…" Lancer materialized in the corner of the room, near the bed. He glanced at still unconscious Bazett, connected to some half-magical, half-medical machinery, and then at Kiritsugu. "Why are you so stubbornly insist on attacking this big Saber guy? It wouldn't be better to fight Berserker or Caster first?"

"It is none of your concern."

Emiya did not even glance at the warrior. Something in his cold voice sounded like a hidden warning, that he would not tolerate any objections.

"I see," Cú Chulainn murmured, not even trying to hide his displeasure. "So I'm only to fight when and where I'll be told to… Fair enough."

Kiritsugu did not react to his words, staring at one of the screens. He was watching the records from the camera placed near the church. Not many details were visible through the open door, but they could more or less analyze the course of the fight inside.

"Look at these objects, Maiya. What do you think? What are they?"

Kiritsugu stopped the record and let the woman take a closer look. Lancer also stared at the screen from behind their backs.

"This is definitely a sword," Maiya said, pointing at long, blurred object. "And this one looks like a spear."

"And a nice halberd up here." Cú Chulainn noticed and whistled quietly. "So it was a very unusual Archer, huh?"

"Lancer, I think that you should be outside now, guarding this place."

There were no emotions in Kirutsugu's voice, but Lancer frowned anyway and left without a word.

He did not like the old man and suspected that they will not get along well. It was not so uncommon for Heroic Spirits to have a rude Master, who's treating his Servant like a mindless tool, but there was something more about Kiritsugu, what was particularly getting on Lancer's nerves. Cú Chulainn already decided that he will not allow this strange man to go against the rules and use any dirty tricks to mess up with duels of true heroes. What kind of victory was that – achieved by striking enemy's back or sniping cute girls from hiding?

"Well, betraying your Master, even if he's a complete dick, does not sound good either." Lancer sighed and looked around, fulfilling his duties of a guard dog. "Oh? What's this?"

Someone left on the sidewalk a message especially for him - old Irish runes glowed with a purple light and vanished when he finished reading.

* * *

There was so much to talk about with Ruler… And this is why Rin decided to not talk about the war at all, at least today. They were all tired and worried, they needed some rest and fun. Tohsaka already had something in mind and she easily convinced both Servants that 'one day off will not hurt anyone and for sure no one will be fighting today'.

But first they needed to prepare. Ruler's clothes were torn and bloodstained, so she was trying to fit into one of Rin's shirts. The shape of her homunculus body was not very different, the only problem was that all Rin's clothes were a little tight in the bust for Jeanne.

"H-how do I look?" – she asked and blushed, seeing Rider in the doorway. His gaze was slipping down on the girl's chest, but he was trying heroically to look only at her face.

"What do you think you're doing?" – Tohsaka asked her Servant in a harsh voice, but it did not really sounded like scolding, to be honest.

Siegfried rolled his eyes and answered calmly as usual.

"Well, maybe you didn't notice, Master, but I'm a man. Every man stares at attractive women, even if he tries to act like a gentleman. It's in our nature."

"If it's so natural, then what's with this expression on your face?" Rin was just cruel right now. "You're staring anyway, so be useful and at least say how do we look."

"Ah… well…" Highly embarrassed Siegfried decided to make a tactical retreat and he vanished into spirit form.

"Hey! When you're not visible it's more like peeping, you know? So better get back here!"

Rider materialized again with a heavy sigh.

"What now, Master? Stop torturing me, please."

"This is for you." Rin gave him a pack of clothes. "I'm sure they will fit. What are you looking at? Get changed, quickly. You're going with us, you know?"

"Going… where?" Siegfried was staring at his new clothes, a pair of blue jeans and a comfortable, loose white shirt. Rin arranged everything for him, she even chose some classy details.

"A good question. Rin, where are we going?" Jeanne was curious and ready to go. Tohsaka had to admit that she already was fond of this cute and kind girl, even if she was a Servant, who may turn against them soon.

"You'll see," she said with a mysterious smile.

* * *

Kotomine Kirei was staring at his Command Seals, not really sure what to do. His Servant was kneeling before him as usual, the heavy chains were cutting off his energy almost completely. Berserker was visibly in pain, fighting for every breath, his core on the verge of collapsing. Yet it was still not enough to make him truly obedient.

The priest was ready to order Berserker to commit a suicide. Many times. But it was just too dangerous. His Noble Phantasm, with destructive power comparable to Gilgamesh's ultimate attack, will activate automatically if Berserker feels cornered or a moment before his death. Or even if he just loses control and goes completely mad.

Kirei clenched his teeth, utterly frustrated. This Servant was powerful, but also problematic. He needed a huge amount of energy to be materialized and controlled, and even more to fight. The church was not a safe hideout anymore, they had to move to another location immediately, but Kotomine did not want to risk freeing Berserker from chains yet, or leave the supplies gathered in the basement.

He sighed, still not able to decide. Killing this Servant should be the best option now, but…

"Oh, what a mess you have here, priest…" A woman's voice broke the silence and brought Kirei back to reality. "It's already devastated, so it won't make any difference if I do this, right?"

A beam of pure magical energy, powerful enough to kill a Servant, hit the wall right where Kotomine was standing just a second ago. Only pure instinct and experience of the Executor saved him.

"Caster?" Black Keys appeared in Kirei's hands, yet he could not do anything but dodge the next beam of energy, fired at him with deadly precision. "Why are you here?"

"Stupid question."

Her lips formed a cruel smile, when she ordered her Dragon Tooth Warriors to materialize in the church and go after the enemy Master.

* * *

First they went shopping. Jeanne admired all beautiful and cute things on their way and Siegfried was curious about everything. To have some basic knowledge about the modern world was the one thing, but to experience this world fully – with colours, sounds and tastes – was a completely different matter. And both Heroic Spirits were truly enjoying their free time with Rin, even if they were hesitant at the beginning.

As expected of a Rider class Servant, Siegfried found cars and motorcycles very interesting and he even tried out the drift playground in the underground of the shopping centre. His skills were amazing, and a small fan club of screaming girls formed around him. But they were forced to retreat soon: angry and jealous Tohsaka is not the right person to mess with, after all. And there's no way to compete with angelic, innocent smile of happy Jeanne, whose congratulatory hug made Siegfried very embarrassed.

Then they ended up at the riverside, throwing a frisbee with some curious kids and their very enthusiastic dog.

"Congratulations, Rin." Jeanne smiled. She was sitting on the grass with a picnic basket in hand, tired but extremely happy. It was late, but they decided to rest for a while and eat something before coming home. "You've made our Dragon-Blooded Knight play and laugh like a kid almost all day!"

"Hah, my plan was successful!" Tohsaka clapped her hands, enjoying this easy victory.

"So you've planned it, huh?" Rider shook his head, defeated. "Two on one, this is not fair."

"But our intentions were good!" Ruler smiled again and took a sandwich from the basket. Siegfried was inclined to believe her, but Tohsaka's smile was not that convincing. The girls together looked like a devil and an angel, who formed a strange, crazy alliance just to make fun of him.

"I told you that a little bit of joy from time to time won't kill you…" Rin stopped suddenly, her eyes wide open and her hand raised in panic. "Wait, not that much! It has…"

But Rider already took a big bite of a sandwich… and coughed hysterically, when he tried to swallow.

"…wasabi…"

"It was…" He needed a moment to catch a breath and even more to find the proper words to describe this horror. "How could you eat something like this? Hey, don't laugh at me!"

He hid his face in his hands, embarrassed, but when Tohsaka took a closer look, she noticed that he was just laughing with them. She smiled and poke him in the hip.

"Fine, fine…" Rider surrendered at last and took a deep breath. Something changed in his approach, he seemed to be more relaxed. "I… was thinking about yesterday. You just followed your heart. It's beautiful." He smiled, watching the sunset, the sky painted red and orange. "This is something I need to learn from you, Rin."

Her blue eyes were shining with happiness. So he finally called her by her name, not because she ordered him to do so, but because he wanted to.

"I'll teach you, I promise."

* * *

Caster winced, looking at the deform corpses hidden in the church's basement. These strange, pitiful creatures were children once. At least until the false priest managed to change them somehow into undead batteries for his Servants.

Berserker was staring at Caster, expectantly and persistently, waiting for her reaction. Showing her this place was the first thing the mad warrior did after Medea used Rule Breaker on him.

Well, it was the second thing he did after breaking the contract, to be precise. First he gave Caster a strange, wide smile.

_So… He wants me to destroy them?_

She planned to do it anyway, deep inside she found such practices ugly and unnecessary for a talented magus. Not to mention that Archer was also using mana 'produced' in this creepy dungeon, so cutting off these additional resources was definitely a good move.

_But why does Berserker care? Maybe he's not as mad as he looks?_

Caster was inspecting her new Servant for a while, checking his abilities and analyzing the details. It was satisfying, a few strengthening spells or talismans could make this warrior nearly invincible. With some support he could put up an equal fight with Saber and Rider. Or maybe even with that insolent Irish bitch, who dared to threaten Medea last night…

His mind was more complicated, though. Mad enhancement aside, this guy was internally conflicted. It was like…

"I see." Caster's face brightened with understanding. "There are two… Interesting."

Then Berserker submitted to her completely, perhaps as a sign of his good will or maybe just to gain her trust, and she noticed something even more fascinating. His Noble Phantasm was terrifying, no wonder that the priest tried to seal this ability, to take a total control of it. It was not something to use recklessly, maybe even at all.

Medea smiled and set the basement on fire with a short spell. The mad warrior was observing the raising flames in silence, and she could feel that he was pleased by her choice.

Kotomine was trying to forcefully bind Berserker to his will and it only made him more rebellious. All she had to do now was to manipulate this Servant by giving him an illusion of freedom. It was too easy…

Caster was overjoyed by tons of new possibilities, which appeared before her eyes. Her ominous laughter echoed inside the church, louder than the sounds of fire, which was spreading around the place, destroying everything on its path.


	6. When Dragons Fight

_The fight was intense, fierce and brutal, but also extremely beautiful. It was really the essence of the Holy Grail War, a battle of true heroes, the best and most powerful fighters in the history of mankind…_

* * *

Berserker was lying comfortable on the stairs to the Ryuudou Temple, staring at the sky and counting clouds, with a wide smile on his face. After two years spent in some kind of insane nightmare, almost all the time in chains, he was finally experiencing more freedom than he could ever imagine.

"You're still resting? Good, you deserved it." The girl sat on the stairs next to him. Two ponytails, blue eyes and characteristic red outfit… His Master came to pet him. It was their daily routine.

"My good Servant will do everything I ask him," Rin Tohsaka said and kissed his forehead.

Berserker closed his eyes, embracing this illusion and all the feelings it was giving him. He treasured this memory so much… He could even pretend, that he believes in Caster's lies and spells she was casting to keep him obedient. The warrior was perfectly aware of the fact that this is only a false image, yet he found it beautiful. It was nice of Caster to make him happy for a while, even if she did not mean it and acted for her own purposes.

_It seems that I'm hopelessly in love with a memory._

_It's stupid. Pathetic. It's like an echo from another time._

_I know. But I still love it._

"I have a task for you." 'Tohsaka' was gently playing with his hair, making him purr like a big, lazy cat. "We're going out tonight."

He was listening to her instructions with his eyes closed, trying to focus and remember everything without any magical support. It was much easier than before, when Kotomine made a mess inside his head and almost completely broke his mind. And Caster discovered quickly how to speak to him, so he could understand everything properly.

"But remember: don't let her touch you. Avoid the blows. All of them."

Berserker nodded and slowly lifted his eyelids. He looked at his Master, deep into her fake blue eyes, and wished they were real.

* * *

When she entered the room, the shadows around her cloak returned to their normal state and formed the protective barrier. Rin Tohsaka vanished and only princess Medea remained, extremely pleased and excited with her own plan.

"Why are you deceiving even your ally like that, Caster?" Souichirou glanced at her and put down the book which he was reading. His glasses glittered with reflected light when she closed the door. "You don't trust him?"

"Of course I don't trust anyone but you, Master, but this is not the reason this time. Berserkers are mad and difficult to control without Command Seals. I'm just making this task much easier."

"I see." Kuzuki just accepted this explanation and returned to reading. At first he was hesitant to accept Berserker's presence, but this strange Servant quickly proved to be useful. He already managed to repel Assassin and Lancer from the mountain gate, although the second one did not really want to fight. And, with a little help from Caster, he successfully forced even Saber to retreat.

Yet something else was bothering Souichirou, so he asked again:

"You're going out tonight, according to your mysterious plan?"

"Yes. All is prepared." She laughed like a much younger woman at the thought. "Just wish me luck and wait for me, Master. You'll see."

* * *

Arturia was mad, both at herself and at this cursed Tohsaka… She should have not expected the red magus to fight fairly. And she should have not been mindlessly following the illusions through the town, destroying them one by one, while the real enemy was probably laughing at her from his hideout.

She had to face the painful truth – she failed as a Servant and lost her Master.

But Ilya lived. And it meant that she can be saved. Nothing else really mattered right now.

Saber stopped the engine of 'her' motorcycle and looked around, trying to detect the enemy Servant. She would not say that she had stolen the machine, because she intended to return it to the owner later. But still it was not a very chivalrous act, to be honest.

"I can feel you, rotten bastard," she growled after a long while and moved in the right direction at full speed. "You won't escape."

* * *

"Still no sign of Jeanne?"

"No." Rin was sitting in the saddle behind Siegfried's back, focused on detection spell, and visibly worried. "It's like she'd vanished or something…"

It was not like Ruler to just leave without a word. She left all her personal things, like in a great hurry. Rin knew that Ruler has some special tasks during the Grail War, but they could assist Jeanne and she's already accepted their offer to help. It was strange and Tohsaka suspected that the girl was in some serious troubles.

Rider sighed and gave Grani a sign to fly a little lower. They were patrolling the city almost all night, but could not find Jeanne or anything suspicious, at least until now.

"Rin, it's just me or this girl on motorbike is following us?"

Tohsaka glanced over her shoulder and frowned, surprised.

"You're right. And she is certainly a Servant. I guess she's a Saber class… What a magnificent aura!"

"You want me to be jealous or something?" Rider chuckled and instructed Grani to go back on the ground as soon as they left the built-up area. "If she really wants to have a race, she'll get one."

Their speed increased so much that Rin clung to Rider's back, a little dazed. She did not have to ask why they were galloping on the ground now. They were safe in the air, but it was not fair to only laugh at Saber from above.

It was a fascinating, wild race, the riding skills of both Servants were truly amazing. But they also could not run like this eternally… Or go back home with angry Saber on their tail.

"She's good," Siegfried admitted honestly after a few distracting maneuvers. Saber not only did not give up, but also began to slowly reduce the distance between them. "And stubborn."

"So what should we do?"

Rider was thinking for a while and looked around. Tohsaka realized that he was choosing the best place to fight.

"Rin, please strengthen your body with magic and jump off the saddle when I'll tell you."

"I will, but tell me what are you planning to do?"

"I'm going to face her, of course. But first I want you to be safe. Are you ready?"

She confirmed after casting a short spell. Grani seemed to be slowing down and after few seconds was ready to turn around safely. Performing this maneuver too soon would most likely break the legs of Rider's mount. A horse was just a horse, even materialized in a form of a Servant.

"Now, Rin!"

She jumped and tried to land on her feet, but she fell anyway and hit the ground, the speed was just too great.

_Are you all right, Rin?_

_Yes, no damage. Thank you._

_Good._

She could feel the relief in his voice, when he drew the sword. The stallion knew what was coming, speeded up with all his might and neighed, excited and ready to fight.

Saber was also prepared to strike. They were charging at each other head on, like a knights participating in some strange tournament.

Their swords clashed with a deafening sound. Both warriors were pushed back, but they did not lose their balance. They needed some space to turn around, go back and gain speed again. But Siegfried hesitated halfway and let Grani change to spirit form.

"You giving up your advantage, Rider? Why?" Arturia also stopped and got off the motorcycle. Her armor appeared in a single mana blast.

"My mount is not a machine, I will not force this glorious creature to suffer or die for me if it is not necessary," Siegfried answered with a thin smile. "Before we start… may I know why you were so stubbornly pursuing us, Saber?"

Arturia noticed that something was wrong. She would not expect this Servant to act honorably after using so many dirty tricks on her. Or maybe it was just another trap?

"A strange question from someone who just kidnapped my Master."

"I didn't." He was looking at Saber with his eyebrows raised questioningly and she almost believed him. "You should go and look for you Master now, I will not stop you. We can finish this later, at the appointed time, like knights do."

"Or we can just continue what we started, like Servants do."

"We can." Rider's smile widened, he was not the one to abandon the exciting duel easily, and Saber's skills were more than promising. But still he glanced at Tohsaka, waiting for her approval to go all out.

Rin was standing in a safe distance from both Servants, suspecting that the surroundings will suffer greatly from their clash. She looked around, checking if a magical barrier is needed. There were no houses around, only a broad road and an empty, grassy space, far enough from the nearest buildings. Tohsaka took a deep breath and nodded in response to her Servant's silent question. She was ready to fight and believed in Rider's victory.

"So… let the swords speak." Her trust gave Siegfried wings to do his best. He was ready to launch an attack, with Balmung raised above his head. The jewel in the hilt was shining with a blue light, just like his eyes.

"Here I come!" Saber accepted the challenge and charged at him with the power and speed of the wind.

* * *

There was a battle and a pursuit. Saber was fighting with Tohsaka's Servant, but she did not manage to touch him even once… It turned out soon that he was only distracting Arturia, so his Master could attack Ilya from behind.

She did not remember anything else. And now she found herself tied to a chair with some weird strings, which were completely blocking all her magic and contact with Saber.

Ilya opened her eyes, but she quickly regretted this decision. A scary face with some strange tattoos and red eyes glowing in the darkness was all that she could see.

She already met this Servant, twice - the one who was toying with Arturia and was stubbornly refusing to let her win. Berserker was sitting on the floor before Ilya, looking at her like at a little animal trapped in a cage.

_I see… Without your magic you're just a scared little girl, right?_

_Is she going to cry? I would love to taste her tears._

_I must look terrible to make her stare at me like this._

_She'll be making some awesome noises if I cut her white skin with my blades._

He tilted his head, hesitant. After a short while of a heavy silence, Servant reached out his hand to his defenseless prey…

The girl could not stand the weight of his insane gaze and she clenched her teeth, like expecting the blow or other kind of pain.

But Berserker only gently caressed her cheek with the tips of his fingers, like he would do to a daughter or younger sister.

"Il-ya." No sound actually came out of his mouth, but Ilyasviel could read the syllables easily from the movements of his lips.

"How do you know my name?"

She did not receive any answer. Berserker's face remained expressionless, when he was helping her to drink a glass of water. It was not easy to do with tied hands, so she had to rely on his assistance more than she really wanted to.

But she was no longer afraid of him. Crazy as it might seem, Ilya was oddly sure that this mad Servant will not hurt her, no matter what.

* * *

"I'm honored to fight with such an excellent sword master. You hide your weapon, but every time our swords clash, I can think only of one warrior able to repel my strikes so easily. I'm really glad to meet you, King of Knights."

"You too are easy to recognize, thanks to your excellent swordplay. And this weapon… with True Ether from the Age of Gods... It's a pleasure to challenge you on the battlefield, Siegfried the Dragon Slayer."

Their smiles widened and they attacked again, perfectly synchronized.

Rin sighed. So it was only a short pause for presentation and rest. She needed it as well, because she was holding her breath almost all the time. The fight was intense, fierce and brutal, but also extremely beautiful. It was really the essence of the Holy Grail War, a battle of true heroes, the best and most powerful fighters in the history of mankind…

_They're equal in combat. It will take hours to select the winner this way. They could only scratch each other, so the one, who will run out of the magical energy first, loses. And it will probably be Siegfried, unless he…_

She sighed again. Watching their duel, she could not get rid of a strange picture, which appeared suddenly in her head: the image of two fighting dragons. It was beautiful and terrifying at the same time.

And it seemed that the dragons finally decided to breathe fire at each other.

"So, Saber…" Siegfried stepped back slowly, carefully measuring the distance between them. The jewel in Balmung's hilt started to shine with a blinding blue light. "This is a satisfying exchange of blows, but you must admit that it's getting late and we won't reach any satisfactory conclusion this way."

"I agree." Arturia raised her sword high above her head, revealing its true nature. Excalibur was glowing with the golden light and was collecting even more from the surroundings, little lights were gathering like fireflies."This will be the last one, I promise."

_The blue dragon and the golden dragon will show their true power now._

Tohsaka tensed, feeling an enormous amount of energy around both Servants. Knowing their potential, she expected the worst and prepared her magic shield, just in case.

_Don't worry, Rin. I can handle this._

_I know. Be careful anyway._

_I will._

But there was nothing more to do, to be honest. With their Noble Phantasms unleashed, it will be simply a matter of endurance. Victory or defeat. All or nothing. This is how it looks when dragons fight.

"Bal…"

"Ex…"

"This is meaningless, I can already tell you what will happen." The strange voice came out of nowhere, low and deep, but evidently belonged to a female. "You will both survive, although badly wounded. Then you will retreat and recover, relatively quickly, but there's a chance that you'll not regain your full strength till the end of the war. That would be a waste, don't you think?"

The owner of this voice appeared next to Rin, much to her surprise. The woman must have been covering her presence with some kind of a powerful spell, there was no other explanation for coming all the way here unnoticed.

Tohsaka had to admit that the woman was very beautiful, with her long purple hair, perfect body and piercing gaze of her red, dangerous eyes. She was wearing a simple modern clothes, and two spears which she wielded looked somehow out of place.

"So, will you listen to me?" – she asked the Servants, totally ignoring Rin's suspicious gaze. "Or I have to put my spears right into your stubborn arses? I have two with me not without purpose, you know?"

She was speaking with a strangely serious expression, enough to make both warriors lower their swords and dispel the magic.

"That's better." The woman was visibly pleased. "Now come here and listen. We have a job to do."


	7. Three Queens, the Saint and the White Knight Syndrome

_"_ _I'm not here to solve all your problems, I have my own goal."_

 _"_ _Which is…?" – Jeanne raised one eyebrow, truly curious._

 _"…_ _certainly not your business, Sweetie," Scáthach answered with a horribly cute smile, which made both Rin and Siegfried breathe out heavily._

* * *

"W-whaaaat?!" Siegfried noticed that Rin can be extremely loud, when she's angry. "This is the important 'job' you've talked about?! A dinner?!"

"Yes", the mysterious woman, who introduced herself as Scáthach, replied calmly, shaking her long, gorgeous hair. "I have a lot to tell you, and I can't do it on an empty stomach. I'm hungry."

"Wait!" Saber seemed to be even more shocked than Tohsaka. "You've disturbed our duel just because you wanted us to feed you? Really?"

 _Well, no one said it will be easy_ , Rider thought and sighed, resigned.

After some serious perturbations, they finally came back to the Tohsaka mansion, Rin and her Servant on the horseback, and Scáthach with Saber on her motorcycle. Arturia proved to be susceptible to manipulation and very competitive, because they actually had one more race on their way back. She's learnt eventually that challenging a Rider class Servant in riding skills is not a very good idea, and she was trying hard to not show her frustration openly by verbally abusing her opponent.

Well, even with angry Saber keeping her mouth shut, the other two, arguing about even the most trivial matters, were enough to cause Siegfried a headache.

_Great. More beautiful and angry women in this house. Just great._

Not that he did not like or respect women – it was just the opposite, he adored them. But these particular women were extremely dangerous and able to kick his ass single-handedly. To be the only guy in the house now was a true nightmare.

_They're like three mad queens, damn it… Or three witches, to be precise._

He resisted bravely a sudden urge to shift into spirit form and only proceeded to the mansion first, feeling someone's presence inside.

The traces of blood on the corridor seemed disturbing enough, but a bag full of cake lying nearby made him even more suspicious. The mystery was solved a moment later, when he found wounded Ruler collapsed on the floor on the way to kitchen.

"Jeanne! What's happened?"

"Nothing, really, I've just… Oh…" She did not even try to resist when he picked her up from the floor and carried her upstairs to her room.

"A Servant attacked you? And still you managed to buy some cake in this state?"

"No, I've just convinced the salesman that I really need it. I'm sorry."

Rider laughed at this unexpected response. Jeanne concluded that he must have been very tired after the fight, to dispel his sword and most parts of his armor. He took the first aid kit out of the closet, glad that Rin had one in every guest room, and sat down next to Ruler.

"So… what exactly happened?" – he asked, cleaning her wounds. They were not serious and seemed to be healing well, thanks to her regenerating abilities, but a little help will not hurt.

"I can't tell you… yet. Forgive me."

He did not insist, only nodded, focused on bandages, and he was dealing with them surprisingly well.

"You've had some medical training?" – Jeanne asked, truly impressed.

"Not really. My life was full of adventures, so I had to take care of my companions and myself." He shrugged. "Here, it's done. But I can see that you're still worried?"

"I feel… ashamed," Jeanne said with the most depressing voice that Rider had ever heard. "I was too weak to fulfill my duties and I had to use one of the Command Seals to survive…"

His blue eyes were full of understanding and compassion when they met her sad, amethyst-colored eyes.

"I'm sure that you did your best. I think you push yourself too hard, Jeanne," he said simply, straight from the heart. It was not a lie to comfort her, he truly meant it.

"It's a funny thing to hear from you, Siegfried." Ruler smiled a little, but then realized that it was inappropriate and she could accidentally offend him. "I'm sorry, I didn't…"

"No, I understand. I'm aware of my past mistakes. That's why I'm here, right?" Rider gave her a thin smile. "But it seems that for me my Master is the Grail I wanted. I've learned a lot from Rin and now she's my treasure and reason to fight."

The way he said it made Ruler feel a sudden warmness near her artificial heart. If there was anything beautiful in the Grail Wars, it was the bond that Heroic Spirits shared with their Masters. She could only admire this kind of loyalty and devotion.

"And for her?" – she asked not without a purpose. "What does she want from the Grail?"

"Nothing, really. Rin wants to improve, to win. But she's already strong enough to achieve every goal she'll ever imagine."

"It means that you both don't have the real need for the Grail?"

"So it seems. That's why we can assist you. If you want our help, of course."

"Well, thank you, but it's too much to ask…" She looked away, embarrassed, but it was something more and Siegfried noticed it with ease.

"I can understand that you don't trust us yet, but be sure that my Master has a good heart and she follows it. She always does what she wants and she's free from regrets. She's amazing."

"It sounds like you're in love with Rin or something…"

He tensed for a moment, thinking about Ruler's words with a serious expression.

"I guess it is a kind of love. I genuinely admire Rin for her heart and abilities, I won't deny it. She's the best Master I could ever imagine to have."

"I see." Jeanne accepted this explanation, but a thin, cute smile was still dancing on her lips, and it was the clear sign, that she had a slightly different opinion on the subject.

"I should go now and check if they've not killed each other down there." Siegfried stood up slowly and headed to the exit, but he stopped in the doorway and said quietly: "I want you to know that I admire you too, Jeanne. Don't ever let anyone change your pure heart."

And he left the girl alone, utterly shocked and with a hot blush on her face.

* * *

It was the last thing that Caster expected to see and she needed a moment to shake off the shock.

Berserker was sitting on the floor with his back leaning against the wall and his eyes closed. The white-haired girl clung to his chest, using Servant's body as a pillow, or rather a bed, because she was also sitting on his lap. Ilya looked so tiny and white in contrast to this big man, with skin covered in shadows. Her hands were still tied but she was sleeping peacefully.

This was definitely not what Medea meant by 'guarding the hostage'.

_What's wrong with this Servant? First his sick attachment to Rin Tohsaka, now to Master of Saber… He's fixated on female Masters or something?_

The mad warrior opened one eye to look at Caster, but he did not move even a single muscle except it, to not disturb the girl's rest.

"Berserker... you have the gate to guard, please go there now," Medea ordered calmly, trying to hide her irritation. She shouldn't have allowed them to interact, this strange Servant could betray or even attack her now. Who truly knows what is in his head?

But on the other hand… maybe she should let the girl live and keep her as their pet? When she'll finally get Saber, it will the best way to break her. Both Servants may be much easier to control like that, at least until Medea will use this homunculus as the vessel.

Berserker stood up with Ilya in his arms and placed her carefully on the chair, doing his best to not wake her up unnecessarily. He stared at Caster for a while, trying to read her intentions, and left the room as she commanded.

"Remember that Saber is free to enter. Kill everyone else."

As usual he needed about a minute to understand the words, but he nodded eventually and Medea was sure that he'll obey.

She smiled viciously. It was certain. She's already won this war.

* * *

"How? How could this happen?!" Kiritsugu totally lost his usual cool and slammed his fist on the table. The papers were flying around the room, no longer needed, because their basic plan had already failed. "And what was this useless Saber doing?!"

"She was following illusions, clones made by Caster," Maiya explained with no emotion. "I was deceived as well, so don't blame her this much. Then Saber bumped into true Tohsaka and her Servant, and the fight happened."

"So why Saber is now with Tohsaka in her mansion? And who's this strange woman with spears?" Kiritsugu helplessly pointed at the screen, at the image of Rin's house and surroundings. "Another abnormal Servant or something?"

Maiya could only shrug, she had no answer for him. She felt guilty and useless, her task was to observe Ilya and guard her, just like Saber, so they both failed.

"And it seems that they teamed up with a Ruler class Servant." Kiritsugu continued. He was trying to light a cigarette, but his hands were shaking terribly, so he abandoned the idea. "This is bad, we should get rid of Ruler as soon as possible. We don't need additional Command Seals on the battlefield!"

"But Saber teamed up with her too, right? Maybe it's not necessary?"

"I don't know." Emiya hid his face in his hands, panicked. Right now he was not a famous Magus Killer but a worried father, nothing more. He only wanted Ilya back and he did not even have to tell this – Maiya knew it just by looking at him.

She hugged him hesitantly from behind, it was everything she could do to help him calm down.

"You don't want to charge in without any plan, do you?" – she asked quietly, hiding her face in his hair.

Kiritsugu shook his head, his tactical mind seemed to start working again.

"We will sneak in unnoticed to kill Caster's Master."

"But Berserker is guarding the gate, right?"

"Lancer will take him down."

"Is he going to make it? This beast is much stronger than before."

"Lancer is the Berserker's worst nightmare, it will be a short and easy fight."

Cú Chulainn was listening to this conversation, standing silently in the corner of the room with his arm crossed. He was visibly hesitant and worried about something – a very important information about Berserker. Lancer should probably share this detail with his Master, but he was full of doubts. Kiritsugu may not listen to him or, what would be even more terrifying, try to use this knowledge in the worst possible way.

With a barely noticeable sigh, he decided to keep the secret for himself and figure something out in the meantime. He suspected that there will be a total chaos on the temple grounds and some unexpected guests may come as well, to complicate everything even further.

Well, this is how the Holy Grail Wars work, right? It will be a difficult task, but still he had a chance to take control of the situation.

After all, he was not alone in this fight anymore.

* * *

"The only person allowed to stand behind my back is my Master, sorry," Siegfried said and stepped away, just in case.

"Is that so? Don't worry, I came here for tea, not to stab you." Scáthach swallowed the last bite of the cake and filled up her cup. "I must admit that Rider class really suits someone with the White Kight Symdrome like you."

"What?"

"You really can't just walk by and ignore a woman in need, can you?" She poked his cheek, evidently making fun of him. "Or maybe only cute blondes can count on you?"

Rider rolled his eyes and decided to keep silence. Resistance was pointless against this woman.

"Don't worry, Siegfried." Rin came to his aid, which was unexpected but also nice. "She's teasing everyone here equally."

"I've heard that there's a special word nowadays to describe this kind of person," Saber said and stroke her chin, trying to remember it.

"You mean 'a troll', I suppose?" Scáthach sat down and took another cake from the table. It disappeared immediately in her mouth, like all the others. She must have been truly hungry.

"Really?" - Rider asked, surprised. "I killed some trolls, but it was long ago. They were irritating and stinky." Scáthach glanced at Siegfried and if her look could kill, he would fall dead in an instant. He understood his mistake fairly quick. "Oh."

"You seem to know surprisingly much about modern world," Rin noticed, but Scáthach only shrugged.

"It's a long way from Europe to Japan, I've read a lot. Especially this 'Internet' thing. It's a very useful tool, you should try it sometimes."

Tohsaka frowned. Something in this woman, maybe the tone of her voice, was making her extremely nervous. She had some murderous visions just by staying in the same place with this warrior queen.

Fortunately, Jeanne's honest laugh was enough to ease the tension in the room. Already healed, she joined them at last, greeted everyone equally and sat next to Saber. It was strange to have them both sitting so close. They looked almost like sisters, even though Jeanne was possessing a homunculus body.

"Who are you?" – Jeanne asked Scáthach politely, but she was staring at her more suspiciously than she really wanted. "I mean you're not a Servant, but you have some divine aura and a poor connection to this world. And you're not a Master, although you have a potential to be one. Last but not least, you seem to know a lot about the Grail. So?"

"I have some important information about the Grail and stuff. But don't think I'll help you just like that. I'm not here to solve all your problems, I have my own goal."

"Which is…?" – Jeanne raised one eyebrow, truly curious.

"…certainly not your business, Sweetie," Scáthach answered with a horribly cute smile, which made both Rin and Siegfried breathe out heavily.

"Forgive me to interrupt your fascinating exchange of thoughts" – Saber's voice was as cold as the night's breeze – "but I have a Master to save, so if you could get straight to the point already…"

"I don't care about your Master, incompetent girl." The purple-haired woman was openly mocking Arturia, not only with provocative words, but also with her piercing gaze.

Ruler, who was observing Scáthach carefully, was sure that she really did not mean what she said, but was only checking Saber's reaction. King of Knights was sitting on her chair with clenched fists, desperately trying to avoid the bloodshed, but her sword was already almost completely materialized. The tension between the two was growing rapidly, so Rin decided to interfere.

"But we care," she said firmly, glancing at her Servant. "Right, Rider?"

"Well, normally I would rather dissuade you from helping an enemy, Rin, but in this case… this is a disgusting deed and violation of the rules, so I'm definitely going to follow you."

"And we'll be screwed up if Caster gains control over Saber, so there's nothing to discuss, really," Tohsaka added and her Servant nodded without hesitation.

They were as one now and Ruler smiled at the view. She should act neutrally, but she realized that she wanted these two to win, if there really is a prize in the end.

Or maybe there was something more… She blushed unwittingly, remembering Siegfried's last words upstairs, and tried not to jump to strange conclusions.

"Like I said – the White Knight Syndrome, for sure." Scáthach smiled to Rider and raised her hand to calm them down. Just in time, because they all were about to yell at her simultaneously. "I already know all I wanted to know about you, so sit down and listen. First: the Grail is most likely corrupted by the evil entity imprisoned within it. Second: we must keep Berserker alive or it will be even worse than letting the Grail explode."

* * *

Assassin was displeased by the last order this ugly vampire Zouken had given her. She did not like the idea of obeying him in the first place, but Sakura asked her to do so. It was obvious that the old magus intented to torture Shirou just to keep the girl obedient.

This boy was a pain, truly. Assassin realized that she smiles to herself every time she thinks of him. He was brave and charmingly naïve, always caring about Sakura and even about Assassin. The sole fact that someone like him really exists restored a little her faith in humanity.

Sakura also seemed to be more rebellious than usual. She had a strong will and a good heart. Medusa trusted her and was ready to follow her to hell and back again without even asking the reason.

To be summoned by such precious Masters… She must have been really lucky this time.

But she had to wait and survive one, two more nights. Just a little bit longer. The preparations were almost completed and soon she'll free her bellowed Masters from this monster.

 


	8. What's Done…

_"_ _It's quite simple. There are some things in every soul, that would not change no matter how altered an entity becomes. You can call it 'the core'. You cannot really break it, no matter how hard you try."_

* * *

"I've already noticed that you're not a morning person, Master, but this is really late, even for you."

"And you're saying this, lying on the couch and evidently daydreaming?" Rin entered the room straight from the shower, dressed but with still wet hair and a towel in her hand.

"Sorry." Rider wanted to stand up, but Tohsaka stopped him, waving her hand in the air.

"No, no, no, it's fine, I told you to do as you please, right?" She sat next to him, drying her hair. "I'm glad that you feel here like home at last. And it will be a hard night, I suppose."

Siegfried nodded and stared at her worriedly.

"Do you have any plan, Rin?"

"Only that I would rather not act recklessly." She shrugged. "I'm not sure if we should even show ourselves, or just secretly support Ruler, so no one will notice us."

"Good idea."

Tohsaka could bet that he already planned some tactics for every circumstances that had come to his mind, with at least two emergency exits for each. Yet still something seemed to trouble him.

"What's wrong? Which Servant is such a bother to you?"

"Archer," he admitted honestly. "There's no reason for him to show up, but… who knows? I will have to face him anyway in the future, I'm sure."

"You think that you can win against him, one-on-one?"

Siegfried was thinking for a while and took a deep breath before he spoke again.

"I've figured out two ways to defeat him, both require some special circumstances to occur... But I still have a chance for victory."

"Good. And Berserker? What do you think of him?"

"He's not a troublesome opponent for me, to be honest." There was no excessive pride or bragging in his voice, he just told the truth. "I'm really glad that you stopped me from beheading him back then, in the church. Your intuition was incredible. Or maybe it was something more?"

"Maybe…" She stared blankly at the window. It was raining, making the atmosphere in the room even more gloomy that it already was. "To think that the Einzberns knew about him and the corruption of the Grail from the beginning…"

Scáthach has shown them the documents, their notes regarding the Third Grail War, the summoning of Avenger and other details. She spent long hours searching the archives in the castle and, almost by accident, she found the mention of Kirei Kotomine and his abnormal Servant.

Actually, it was the old Jubastacheit, who'd helped Kotomine create the chains to tame Berserker. Kirei came to Germany to propose an alliance for the upcoming war. But Einzbern's homunculus chosen to be a Master failed to summon a Servant, so the false priest left, giving his so-called ally nothing more than scraps of useless information.

It was certain now that Berserker was aware of his own destructive power and did not want to use it or let the false priest control it. So he was calmly enduring every experiment and torture his Master prepared for him for last two years.

 _Dying is much easier than surviving, especially in pain or humiliation -_ Rin sighed heavily at the thought. _So he must have a very important reason to keep resisting._

"Rin, is this Berserker your friend?" - Siegfried asked, bringing Tohsaka back to reality. He hesitated for a moment, but continued eventually, trying not to sound extremely sad. "Or he has something in common with your Servant Archer, whom you miss so much?"

"I'm not really sure. I asked Jeanne to tell me his true name, but she refused. I… suppose that this Servant at least shares the same origin with my Archer."

"I see. So… if…"

But he suddenly stopped talking and Rin could hear only the monotonous sounds of rain hitting the window.

"What?" – she asked, tired of waiting for him to speak again.

"No, nothing." He looked away, somehow ashamed.

"Hey, you should finish what you've started. So?"

"I've just… thought that you may want this Berserker as your Servant. If this is your wish, I will not force you to keep me here against your will, Rin."

Tohsaka blinked, struck by this unexpected confession. She needed a moment to make sure that she understood him properly, and still she found this point of view preposterous.

"You really would do something like that for me?" She smiled gently and almost climbed on his lap to reach his forehead and poke it. "You care for me this much? Or you're just stupid?"

"You're making fun of me?"

"No." She chuckled, playing with a strand of his silver hair. "I'm just not sure why you said something so strange. Well, listen then: you are mine now, my strong, invincible Dragon-Blooded Knight. I don't want another Servant. Got it?"

"Yes." Rider closed his eyes and gave her a peaceful smile. Rin could clearly feel his happiness now, coming through their bond in form of a very pleasant warmness. "And you are my one and only Master. So use me as you wish, Rin."

"Fine. Now just sit like this and don't move." She placed herself comfortably next to him and put her head on his shoulder. "Good, I feel well-guarded, like a part of a dragon's treasure."

It supposed to be a joke, but Siegfried answered so solemnly, that she blushed.

"You are more precious than any treasure a dragon can ever posses, Rin."

* * *

Someone was climbing up the long stairs to Ryuudou Temple, he could feel the slight shaking of the stones and a magical aura of a Servant. Berserker did not have to open his eyes to know who was coming, but he did it anyway, just to take a look at this gorgeous and proud creature.

_Here comes the King of Knights, beautiful as always._

_She will kill my Master and everything will turn into darkness._

_She will do nothing. She's powerless here._

_I want to play with her again, she's so easy to provoke._

Berserker was really excited, but he just let Saber go through, as his Master wanted. He tried to be patient and knew that he will get a fight soon. A good, long awaited fight, on the verge of death, with the truly valuable opponent. The enemy Servant was already there, hiding nearby in the woods, waiting for the best moment to attack, and Berserker was ready to welcome him with open arms.

Arturia tensed a little, when she was passing by, but the mad warrior only glanced at her with one of his red, insane eyes. It was more than enough for Saber to make sure, that they expected her to come.

 _So this annoying Scáthach was right_ , she thought, entering the temple grounds. _Caster wants me, not Ilya. This is why her mana was not cut off and why they're welcoming me here almost politely, like they would treat a possible ally._

She took a deep breath, determined to get Ilya back no matter what the cost.

"Here I am, Caster!" – she shouted, standing in the centre of the courtyard, proud and gallant. "Show yourself!"

* * *

"You haven't changed at all."

Lancer materialized on the branch next to Scáthach and gave his former teacher a wide, happy smile. The woman only rolled her eyes in response.

"And you look older, but I can see that you're as stupid as usual."

"Well said."

There were so many things to talk about, yet both warriors were not the ones to waste time for unnecessary chatter. First they had a job to do, time for talking and celebrating their reunion will come later. But they were just sitting like this for a while, enjoying this meeting much more than they dared to show.

On the stairs below, Saber entered the temple grounds. After a short while, Berserker stood up swiftly and looked in their direction, perfectly aware of Lancer's presence and ready for the upcoming duel.

"I don't get him, really," Cú Chulainn said and tilted his head. "Sometimes he's really insane, sometimes he acts perfectly normal. Why didn't he just destroy everything to get the Grail for himself?"

"It's quite simple. There are some things in every soul, that would not change no matter how altered an entity becomes. You can call it 'the core'. You cannot really break it, no matter how hard you try."

"So deep in this guy's core lies the ideal to not hurt anyone or something like that, huh?" Lancer sighed. "It explains many things, especially why he retreats so easily."

Scáthach nodded, playing with a strand of her hair. She looked uninterested, but in fact she was trying to detect other Heroic Spirits hidden around the mountain. She was constantly monitoring the situation to react if necessary.

"I must go now." Cú Chulainn grabbed his spear with a heavy sigh. "The freaky old man is urging me to go and kick Berserker's ass."

"I can kill this guy for you," the warrior queen said lightly, like it was nothing. "If he's so awful as a Master…"

"Then I will have to fight you to defend him. He kept his promise, so I will keep mine."

Scáthach gave him an extremely suspicious gaze.

"What? This is about honor. It was you who taught me this, remember?"

"Yeah, and I'm glad that you remember it too, so I don't have to repeat myself, using some sharp tools." A beautiful smile appeared on her face and it was somehow terrifying, that her mood changed so fast. "What kind of person is she? This true Master of yours?"

"A little twisted, but who is not twisted here?" He shrugged, a thin, longing smile brightened up his face. "She's brave, trustworthy and she believes in my strength."

"I see." A strange wild light flickered in her eyes. "I can understand why you like her."

"And what about your new friends? I'm sure that you gave them hell to check if you can rely on them."

"Indeed." Another terribly sweet smile. "These kids are quite reliable, I must admit. But they should keep their mouths shut and don't call me 'a troll' ever again."

"Huh?" Lancer looked surprised for a while, then he just burst out laughing. "They're mistaken. You're not just an ordinary troll, but the Queen of Trolls!"

"Sétanta!" Scáthach growled angrily, like scolding a naughty brat. Her expression, narrowed eyes, even the tone of her voice, made Cú Chulainn feel young again. He would never expect to feel something like this after so many years, especially during the war. Maybe this Grail was more powerful than they thought, to create such unexpected 'miracles'?

Still laughing, he jumped down to the stairs, where his opponent awaited.

* * *

"Saber, don't listen to her, I'll be fine." Ilya groaned painfully, when magical 'strings' wounded her hands. Caster hurt the girl at whim, to show that Ilya's life now depended on Saber's behavior.

Medea was waiting patiently, with Rule Breaker in hand and a thin smile on her face. It was only a matter of time. Saber was hesitant, but she'd already noticed that resistance is futile and giving up was the only way to save this little girl.

It was the sweetest moment of this war so far… The ritual blade was about to touch this beautiful chest! And the face of Saber right now! What a gorgeous view!

But something was wrong, Caster could feel it in the air.

"Souichirou!" – she shouted all of a sudden, changed into a spirit form and rushed to her Master's side.

* * *

Lancer had to admit that he enjoyed this duel much more than he should. It was just like the first night when they met: every single blow was repelled or countered and they could not even scratch each other.

It was really satisfying, until Berserker suddenly changed the direction of his next attack and charged at Lancer head on, completely ignoring his spear. It was just crazy, like he was trying to commit suicide, using Cú Chulainn's weapon to pierce his uncovered chest.

"Hey, what are you d…?!" – Lancer jumped back to avoid this unexpected impact.

He quickly understood why Berserker reacted so strangely - he noticed a slight movement of air above his head, a little sparkle of silver light. A weird chain-dagger hit Berserker in the arm. This kind of surprise attack would be fatal, it was amazing that the mad warrior managed to dodge. It was not a serious wound, yet still he looked excited by the pain, too much to call it normal, and tattoos on his skin started to emanate some strange shadows.

"Hey, buddy, it's not a good time to lose control!" – Lancer shouted and stroke his opponent with the blunt edge of his spear to calm him down.

But Berserker ignored him completely and attacked Assassin, who finally showed up to face him.

Assassin was too fast for the mad warrior, she was causing him a lot of troubles. But she could not maintain that enormous speed for long and it was obvious, that Berserker will soon regain the control of this fight.

"Damn, what a mess…"

One thing was certain – for unknown reason Assassin was helping Lancer get to the temple and deal with Caster. He would rather not leave Berserker alone, to let him rage freely, but it was also in accordance with the order that was given to him by Kiritsugu right now. Emiya used one of his Command Seals just a second ago, so actually Cú Chulainn had no other choice.

He sighed heavily, when magic started to drain him out of this place, in order to save the life of his Master.

* * *

"So, Archer… you will not join them? You seemed to be quite interested in Berserker before?"

Gilgamesh only crossed his arms, watching the duel with a mixture of contempt and curiosity on his face.

"I may be interested, but only when this mad dog decides to go all out. Now he's just boring. "

"Really?" Kotomine was standing next to him, his hands behind his back. "Nobody here seems interesting for you?"

"Saber is somehow attractive. And I may try some dragon slaying… later." Archer smiled viciously, already imagining this future encounter. "And what about you? You will intervene?"

"I did. Besides, they're doing our job well enough."

Caster was actually the last obstacle in their path to success. The witch must have been considered a threat by the others as well and it was only a matter of time, that someone will try to get rid of her. But to see all participants of the war here… it was very fortunate. Not only they did not have to bother with fighting Caster, but also they could observe other Servants in action.

Kirei had to admit, that he did not expect to see Lancer alive and was determined to provoke his new Master to show up. But not yet. Now he decided to just wait and let him do the job.

* * *

 _This is bad_ , Kiritsugu thought, when his Origin Bullet did not work on this strange guy.

The surprise attack was prepared and executed perfectly, nobody noticed Kiritsugu in the temple, until he shot. But it was meaningless now.

"Maiya! We're retreating! Cover me!"

She was shooting almost constantly, but Kuzuki's body was reinforced so much, that he could easily ignore the normal bullets, just by protecting himself with his bare hands.

_Damn, I can't let him get any closer!_

But it was already too late, Souichirou managed to engage Emiya in hand-to-hand combat. Only acceleration was keeping Kiritsugu alive now, although barely, and he knew that his heart would not hold it much longer.

"Come, Lancer!"

One Command Seal disappeared from his hand and a moment after Lancer materialized between Kiritsugu and attacking Kuzuki. The blue warrior repelled a powerful blow with his spear and pushed the enemy Master back.

But Souichirou did not stop attacking, totally ignoring the fact that he was dealing with a Servant right now. Cú Chulainn whistled with admiration, when this strange man forced him to focus on defense.

"Master, better get out of here, it is a task for a warrior, not for a…" – Lancer stopped and dropped his spear, utterly shocked. Souichirou's head literally exploded in Cú Chulainn's face, when Kiritsugu just shot the man from behind. "…bastard like you…"

Above their heads Caster screamed horribly and a sudden blast of energy made the buildings shake.

* * *

"I've never seen you so excited before, Kotomine."

"Oh? It's just… it's like meeting an old friend."

Gilgamesh raised his eyebrows, waiting for explanation, but Kirei was only standing there, with a wide smile on his face.

 _Kiritsugu_ __Emiya_ … So many ways to fight him, so many possibilities to break him... What to choose? His daughter, his son or his ideals?_

* * *

Caster flied higher up and started to randomly destroying everything in sight, Servants, people and buildings alike. Blinded by the pain and despair, she spotted Ilya and a nasty idea came to her mind.

"Is this little girl so precious to you, mage? Then watch her die!"

Arturia clenched her teeth, frustrated. Ilya was still tied with magic, so the King of Knights could only guard her, using her own body as a shield. She tried to activate her Noble Phantasm against Caster, but she did not get enough mana through the barrier…

"Rin, are you ready?" – It was Rider's voice. The Dragon-Blooded Servant materialized near Saber, with a sword in his hands.

"Yes." Tohsaka did not show herself; well-hidden all along, she was trying to break the spell which was keeping Ilya prisoner. The strings disappeared with annoying sounds. "It's done."

"Great. Now go, Saber. Get the little one out of here."

"You have my thanks, Rider." Arturia bowed her head a little and retreated immediately with Ilya in her arms.

Enraged Caster was now firing the beams of energy at Siegfried, who was dodging leisurely or blocking them with his sword. Her magic was not powerful enough to wound the warrior seriously, so he was standing there like a living shield, doing particularly nothing but distracting the witch.

He suspected that Caster has lost her mind after her Master's dead. A magus with her potential should have at least one spell powerful enough to truly harm him, yet she was just overusing her mana, mindlessly destroying the surroundings.

And then Lancer came back to the scene, fast like a big blue cat, ready to use his claws.

"I have an order to defeat Caster anyway, so…" He barely glanced at Siegfried over his shoulder, focused on the flying enemy.

"I understand. This is not my fight." Rider placed his giant sword on his back and stepped away slowly. "Good luck."

Lancer nodded, determined to end this as soon as possible.

"I'll make it quick, so you won't have to suffer long without your beloved Master," he said quietly, still ashamed of Kiritsugu and his disgusting tactics. "I promise."

* * *

"So it ended?" Gilgamesh yawned, disappointed. He was enjoying the show, even if he was not willing to admit it. "Where's this useless woman? Don't tell me that she let herself be killed by the beast?"

Assassin materialized behind his back, and it was obvious, that she was waiting for a signal to do so. Kotomine smiled, seeing Archer angry that the other Servant actually managed to get behind his back unnoticed.

"Good job down there," the false priest admitted honestly, he knew well how hard it was to keep Berserker busy for such a long time. "And what about the last night?"

"She's infected, like you wanted." Assassin reached out her hand - something was slowly moving in her grasp, a strange, ugly bug. Kotomine took it carefully and placed the creature in a small box. "Now it's your turn, priest."

"Of course. Bring the kids to me in the evening, it will be done."

Medusa shook her extremely long hair, turned around, and disappeared in the night air, leaving Kirei and his golden-haired Servant in suspiciously good moods.

* * *

"The end is always the same for me. I let my Master die, I've lost this battle. I'm pathetic."

Caster was lying in a deep puddle. Her robe was all red from the blood and wet from the rain. She was breathing shallowly and only thanks to an enormous amount of energy, which she'd collected from the citizens of Fuyuki, she was still able to keep the material body after the deadly strike of Gáe Bolg. She reached out her hand to the sky, like catching the raindrops, and slowly closed her eyes.

Someone gently grabbed her hand, bringing the dying princess back to the fading reality.

"Berserker? But I'm not…" She had no magic left to cast any illusions or command him, yet he still was there in her last moments. "I see. So you knew from the beginning."

The mad warrior was just sitting next to her in the mud, partially covering her from the rain, emotionless as usual.

"I like you." Medea smiled, a thin streams of blood were running down her cheeks. "You never called me "a witch". I thought that it's because you can't actually talk, but… No, you've never thought like this about me. Thank you."

Berserker lowered his head and let Caster caress his hair. At least she will not die alone, abandoned by everyone. This was all he could do to thank her for few moments of freedom and happiness she gave him.

"You were a good Servant." She coughed painfully and decided to stop all the regeneration processes. It was the time to end this farce. She fed Berserker with all her remaining mana. "Now you should go and find a new Master. I wish you luck."

And she disappeared for good, ephemeral and fragile like a dying butterfly.

* * *

Jeanne was shocked how cruel and ruthless Masters can be. She shook her head, resigned. She was able to command Servants, not Masters, and there was nothing she could do. What's done cannot be undone… Besides, she had a very important task right now.

She found Berserker not far away from the temple. He was standing in the rain, watching the city lights in the distance. Jeanne noticed that he was trembling, probably trying to keep his material body and destructive Noble Phantasm in check.

"What should I do with you?" – she asked, staring at his motionless back.

"He needs a Master, not your compassion." Scáthach walked up to them, visibly worried.

"You have someone in mind?" Jeanne 's eyes widened, when the other woman gave her a very serious look. "Wait, don't tell me… But you will not make it alone, your connection to this world is not strong enough."

"Neither is yours. But together we have a chance."

"What?"

"Don't ask stupid questions. You have two Command Seals for him, I have more than enough mana and together we can connect him with this world. All seems clear for me."

Ruler was thinking for a while, then said hesitantly:

"It… really may work."

Scáthach sighed, slowly losing her patience.

"Come on, he actually has two personalities…"

"Persons", Ruler corrected mechanically, but the warrior queen did not stop talking, ignoring her completely.

"…personalities in his head, we can share."

"All right, but you take the part which contains the bloodlust."

"Fine for me, I'll just kick his ass if he starts making trouble." She shrugged. "You can pet the cute part how much you like."

"You're an awful woman," Jeanne said, blushing for unknown reason.

"Maybe. But he doesn't mind. Right, Berserker?"

The mad warrior did not answer, but he gave them a wide, gentle smile.


	9. Good Intentions

_"_ _But if you want to discuss my methods or give me lessons in heroism, better let go. I've had enough of listening to the speeches of knights in shining armors._ _"_

* * *

"Shirou, how do you feel?"

He slowly opened his eyes, not really sure what's happened or where he was. Assassin was near, he could feel her hand on his forehead. Her fingers always seemed strangely cold and incredibly soft, like a skin of a snake, but he liked the touch anyway.

"Everything is ok, Master?" - the woman asked again, clearly concerned.

The boy had to think for a while to answer this question. Something was different than before and he needed a moment to realize that he was, at last, free from pain. There was even more - he felt light and pure, like a newborn child. And a magical energy was flowing wildly through his circuits, like never before.

"Yes. I feel… unexpectedly well. But what happened? What is this place? And where's Sakura?"

"So many questions, Master," Assassin said with a calm smile, caressing his almost white hair. "You've been healed by the spiritual doctor, Shirou. There's no more worms in your body. I promised I won't let anyone hurt you."

Shirou could not resist and smiled gently. Her words were full of devotion and kindness. He knew that their Servant cared for them, but he did not expect her to go so far to actually save her little, weak Masters.

"Thank you," he said calmly, straight from his heart. "I know that this is for my sake, but… you should have told us about your plans. And Sakura?"

"She is sleeping after a long and complicated surgery, but she's well." Assassin smiled again and Shirou thought that it's nice to see her so happy. "It was a surprise, a gift for my beloved Masters. And soon I will bring you the Grail. But now you should rest, Shirou."

After a short moment of hesitation, he nodded and closed his eyes. He was worried and had more questions, but there was no reason to rush. First they both need to recover and discuss the most urgent matters.

Where will they go? What they should do? And what about the Grail?

He started to wonder - does he truly need the Grail? He participated in this war only for Sakura, to keep her company and give her strength. To fight in her place and don't let her pure soul and white hands stain with blood. They were fighting for Zouken, not for themselves. And Shirou did not even think of any wish or reason to continue this battle.

Actually, there was a reason - to end this fight once and for all. He hasn't met other Masters yet, but he was somehow sure, that there must be at least one, who thinks the same way. Sakura should agree with him too. But if she wants to win the Grail anyway, Shirou will do what he can to get it for her.

His thoughts have become blurred and he soon surrendered completely to an overwhelming weariness. Assassin was watching over Shirou until the boy fell asleep. The kids were safe and healed, nothing else mattered. It was like she's already won the war.

_And soon Zouken will be dead_ , she thought and smiled. The priest kept his promise so far, so the end of this old, disgusting vampire was inevitable. Assassin was determined to do everything Kotomine asks to make it happen.

* * *

Rin was on her way to the kitchen, when she suddenly bumped into Scáthach. The purple-haired woman was still wet after showering, wearing only a single towel, which was barely covering her. Her bare feet were tapping on the floor, leaving annoying wet spots on it.

"What do you think you're doing?" Tohsaka did not try to hide her disapproval. "What's with this barbaric behavior? This is not a hotel!"

Scáthach rolled her eyes.

"Look, I had a long training, I'm not in a mood for chatting. I'm really tired right now, so go away, unless you have something sweet to eat."

"Go away?!" Tohsaka's face turned red, she was not holding herself back anymore. "This is my house, you know?! You're parading here naked…"

"Half-naked," Scáthach corrected and lowered the towel a little.

"Whatever!"

Her screams must have alarmed Siegfried, who joined his Master upstairs. He was more than worried, seeing them both tensed, like a pair of angry cats, sharpening their claws before attack.

"Rin? I've heard a terrible noise, so… Oh." He changed to spirit form in a great hurry.

"Hey, why are you not visible? I need your help here!"

"An invisible help won't be enough?" Tohsaka could hear an obvious apologize and embarrassment in his voice. "I don't want to be punched for just standing there, because I'm a guy."

"You must have some very bad experiences, right?" Scáthach laughed. "Don't be afraid, in my culture women do what they want and there is a slim chance that I may want you…"

That was too much for Rin, even if it was only a part of usual trolling.

"Keep your hands off my Rider! You have your own Servant to torture now!" She stopped suddenly, thinking. "By the way, what were you doing with him all morning?"

"I was checking his ability to learn new things. And it seems that he's doing pretty well. So there may be still a chance."

"For what?"

Scáthach looked at Tohsaka with superiority and a certain amount of disappointment.

"I'm going to open his magic circuits and bring some of his sanity back," she said in a bored tone. "This priest damaged him, he's now like… hmmm… a locomotive forced to work on the engine of a motorcycle. Well, maybe it's not a very fortunate comparison, but you know what I mean, right? That's the reason he drains us so much. It would be hard even for me to keep him without help of Jeanne." She yawned. "And that's why I need a coffee. With sugar. Lots and lots of sugar."

And she left Tohsaka on the corridor with no more words of explanation, still angry but also deep in thought.

* * *

"So, Berserker…" Jeanne sat next to her new Servant on the grass in the garden of Tohsaka residence. The mad warrior did not want to stay inside for some unknown reasons. Ruler noticed that they could not get along well with Rider, but she did not really understand this mutual dislike. "You must be tired after this 'lesson' with Scáthach. She said that it's for your own good, so you'll have a better control."

It was not a very original way to start a conversation, but Jeanne tried her best to make friends with him. She suspected, that, because of Ruler's class special abilities, she knew about this Heroic Spirit's past and other details even more than Scáthach. She felt sorry for him and was determined to help.

Berserker slowly opened his red, terrifying but also beautiful eyes. There was no aggression or malevolence in his look, only a calm resignation.

"I want you to know, that…" Jeanne wanted to say something, but abandoned the idea. "No, it's stupid. Forgive me."

She stood up and turned away to leave, but Berserker grabbed her arm forcefully and pulled, until she lost her balance. She did not expect him to attack, and she fell on the grass, overwhelmed by his inhuman strength.

"What are you d…?! Stop it!"

Berserker did not react to her screams, only sniffed like a dog, and cut her arm with his corrupted Black Keys.

She squealed with pain and tried to break free from his grasp, but Berserker completely ignored her resistance. His blades were drawing a strange trail on her skin, like he was trying to find some invisible, moving target inside her artificial body. The daggers had to be partially spiritual, because she could feel not only flesh, but also her soul almost torn apart. He was manipulating even with her magic circuits right now!

"Stop! It hurts! Just st… Aaaaaaah!"

"Damn, Berserkers are really this strong?" Rider, alarmed by the noise, tried to pull the mad Servant away from Jeanne. He needed help of Scáthach to free the scared girl completely. "Just let go of her, you stubborn idiot!"

"Your Master orders you to stop immediately!" The voice of the warrior queen was as cold as ice and the tip of her spear landed only a centimeter from Berserker's throat.

The mad Servant obeyed. He did not resist or fight back anymore, just stared at wounded Jeanne with an empty expression. Rin was already with Ruler, trying to stop the bleeding.

"It's ok, Siegfried, you may release him now," Scáthach said, trying to understand what'd really happened. She drew a protective circle on the ground to hold Berserker in place without chaining him. "It's strange, but he did not lose control, even for a second."

"So he cut her in purpose?" Rider's eyes narrowed angrily, but he only stepped aside and looked at Jeanne, visibly worried. "Are you ok? And… wait a minute." He winced, struck by a sudden _déjà vu_. "The last time you were wounded… it was the same arm, right?"

Scáthach raised her eyebrow and glanced knowingly at Rin.

"I'll prepare some detecting spells. We need to hurry." Tohsaka stood up and ran to the house. "Siegfried, bring her here!"

"Understood."

"Why? What are you going to do?" Jeanne looked really miserable in Rider's arms, too surprised to resist.

"Don't worry, Sweetie." Scáthach smiled and her awfully cute grin made Ruler even more nervous than before. "We're just going to strip you and carefully check every inch of your body."

* * *

"Master… Has your goal changed recently or something? You really want to win that badly?"

Lancer caught Kiritsugu on the roof. Emiya was sitting there with a cigarette, as usual, trying to collect his thoughts.

"What happened? You're suddenly interested in my motives?" Magus barely glanced at his Servant, focused on the glowing tip of the cigarette. He must have been in a good mood to not ignore the question completely. "But if you want to discuss my methods or give me lessons in heroism, better let go. I've had enough of listening to the speeches of knights in shining armors."

Cú Chulainn sighed heavily. He really had no idea how to speak with this guy.

"No, I just want to understand something. You've told me that you only want to support this little girl with Saber and now what? You're hiding from her? You're enemies now?"

"Perhaps," Kiritsugu replied with a strange, sad smile. "You don't like it? You're going to break our contract?"

"I'm still here, am I not?" Lancer's eyes narrowed dangerously. He could understand many things, but calling him a potential traitor, when he was keeping his promise even after such a disgusting incident, was too much. "All I want is to avoid unpleasant surprises in the future."

Kiritsugu seemed to accept this explanation, he just nodded and said calmly:

"Your task now will be to observe Ruler. You may do it from hiding or join this weird company gathered in Tohsaka's residence, I don't care how you'll make it. I want to know everything about her. Especially her weaknesses and the reason why she's here."

"Finally it sounds like an order, Master!" Cú Chulainn winked, a bit more relaxed. "Just try to not die from smoking until I'm back, ok?"

Kiritsugu chuckled dryly and waved his hand, giving his Servant a sign to go.

Lancer departed willingly, but he was not completely free of doubts. It was a pleasant order, but he had to leave Bazett here, in the care of Maiya. A deal is a deal, but there was no trust between them and Lancer was sure that it will never change.

He sighed again, analyzing the situation. The fact, that he ended up as Emiya's Servant, seemed to be a blessing in disguise, in some strange, twisted way. Not that he had any influence on this stubborn and unpredictable old man, but still he could at least keep an eye on him.

All he could do now was to observe his Master, stay alert, and hope that he will not be forced to take a drastic action.

* * *

They really checked every inch of Ruler's body, scanning as deep as they could reach, but they couldn't find anything suspicious. Rin tried out three completely different methods and Rider used all the senses of a Servant – still with no effect.

"Maybe Berserker is broken after all?" – Tohsaka said at loud what others were thinking all along, but feared to admit. "Jeanne mentioned before that he tried to kill his first Master… Maybe it's a part of his madness?"

"No, the situation was different back then," Ruler denied categorically, shaking her head. She still believed in Berserker's good nature, but was also afraid to get closer to him. "I'm sure that he didn't mean anything wrong."

Siegfried, who was standing in the doorway with his arms crossed, rolled his eyes, unconvinced. His distrust and a deep antipathy towards Berserker were obvious.

"And that's why he almost killed you?"

"Maybe there is no other way and we should chain him?" Rin was not very enthusiastic about this idea, but she could not see any other solution right now.

"No, it won't be wise," Scáthach said, stroking her chin. "It will make him rebellious. He will never trust us again. And there's no reason to act so recklessly."

Suddenly, the sound of the doorbell interrupted the heavy silence that had fallen inside the house.

"Saber?" Rider gave Tohsaka a surprised gaze and glanced at Jeanne. She nodded, also feeling the presence of the King of Knights nearby. "You invited her, Rin?"

"No, but I suppose she has no bad intentions if she's coming so openly."

Rin was right. Ilya was standing outside the entrance door, with a wide smile on her face. She even brought some snacks with her.

"Good morning!" – the white-haired girl shouted cheerfully, as if she was greeting her best friends. Behind her back embarrassed Saber only shrugged and gave Tohsaka an apologetic look. "I have to thank you, help you and all, I know. But first…" She looked around, obviously searching for someone. "Where is he, huh?"

* * *

"You've finally awaken? Good."

Sakura opened her eyes and saw a strange man, dressed like a priest, who was sitting next to her bed. She tried to get up, but she was still dizzy and weak, like after a very long, restless sleep.

_Who's this man? An enemy Master? Or maybe just a part of machinations of grandfather?_

"Where's Shirou?" – she asked after a short while, trying to figure out what is going on.

"He's fine," Kotomine said simply. "What's more, he can now give your Assassin enough mana without any help. I let myself not only take all the worms out of his body, but also open his magic circuits. Now he'll be a better magus than ever before. I'm sure that he'll be happy to assist you."

Sakura's eyes widened in pure shock.

"Remove the worms? H-how?"

The priest gave her a thin, self-satisfied smile.

"You were lucky. This old fox missed the best moment to infect you. Two, three years sooner and those worms would be already a part of your nervous system, burrowed too deep to remove them safely." He stood up and walked around the room, there and back again. It was too dark to notice any details and guess what kind of place it was, but the smell reminded Sakura of a musty basement. "Now you're able to use your full potential, girl. And I will soon have the special Servant for you."

"I'm not interested…" – Sakura started to speak, but Kirei only raised his hand, silencing her. It was not yet a threat, but rather a signal that her objections were meaningless.

"You don't understand, do you? This is not negotiable."

There was something dangerous in his voice and serious gaze, which made the girl tremble. She quickly realized that the real troubles have already begun.


	10. The End of the Dream

_"I'm well aware of my position. But it won't stop me from confronting you."_

* * *

"You know that you can tell me everything, right? They're rude and they're not treating you well? The big guy with a giant sword doesn't like you?" Ilya clung to Berserker and kept stroking his hair with no sign of fear. She glanced over her shoulder at the unexpected audience. Almost all inhabitants of Tohsaka residence were watching her from a safe distance. "What are you looking at?"

Saber and Rin were visibly nervous and somehow jealous, Arturia even seemed ready to rush to rescue the girl at any moment. Ruler and Scáthach, on the other hand, were only smiling at the view. It was obvious that Ilya was totally safe in Berserker's arms.

At first the mad Servant seemed to be surprised by this unexpected visit, maybe even embarrassed, but soon he gave up completely to Ilya's innocent charm. His patience was truly admirable. The girl even managed to feed him with her favorites fruit jellies.

"Such a perfect older brother," Jeanne said quietly with a sad smile, remembering some flashbacks from her Servant's past.

"The most important thing right now is the fact, that she has an actual interaction with him," Scáthach said, practical as usual, but her expression was softer than before. "It's a good sign. With her help we may be able to fix him completely."

"You mean the one of them or both?"

"We'll see."

"Maybe you want to be my Servant?" – Ilya asked with a very serious expression and Berserker reacted with… a honest laugh. "Hey, don't laugh at me. I can provide enough mana for at least three Servants, Berserkers or not. What's with this gaze? Of course I'm the strongest Master!"

When the mad Servant stopped laughing, Ilya asked him to lower his head. He obeyed and she whispered something in his ear.

"Let's go back inside, all of you!" - Scáthach ordered, grabbing Rin's and Saber's shirts and pulling both women back to the house. Ruler helped her a little, by silencing angry Tohsaka. "Give them some privacy, for gods sake!"

Behind them the white-haired girl reached out her small hand and gently wiped the single tear from Berserker's cheek.

* * *

"Hey, Grani, you remember the good old days? The time when birdsongs had no meaning for us and dragons seemed to exist only in legends," Siegfried said with a nostalgic smile. He was rubbing and scratching his horse behind his ears, holding a blade of grass in his mouth. "We used to ride through the forests with no purpose, to our hearts' content."

But after tasting the blood of Fafnir, he started to understand the language of birds and this ability returned to him just now. Rin must have improved as a magus last days, to bring back some of his old skills. Siegfried wondered if his Master knows how strong she already is. After all, she managed to break a spell casted by the powerful witch, who was using magic almost at will, like some legendary creatures from ancient times.

Rider sighed, thinking of Tohsaka. It was the first time she sent him on patrol alone, with an order to find Kotomine's hideout. She was obviously needed at home, to prepare and perform the rituals planned by Scáthach, and he would be only a bother to them, but… It was hard for him to resist the impression that he was simply thrown out of the mansion. Just kicked out, like a trash, with no further use.

He felt like losing something important. Although it was a wrong and shameful feeling for a hero like him, he just did not want Berserker to be nearby, especially in a less insane state. It would be the end of the beautiful dream he had about Rin and the Grail…

What was he thinking anyway? This is not a second chance, not even a life. He was here only to follow orders, to grant wishes. Just like when he was alive.

_Sooner or later, we all have to wake up._

He closed his eyes, focusing on the surroundings. The night birds were singing about some strange shadows, which were gathering around Mount Enzou. This was the place he should check as soon as possible, but first…

"Huh? At the bridge?" A strange, powerful aura was coming from the bridge, and it was impossible to confuse this Servant with any other. This sudden blast of mana was clearly an invitation.

Siegfried was just standing for a while, gently stroking the neck of his horse, not sure if he should react. Rin ordered him to be careful and challenging the most powerful Servant in this war head on, without any plan or support, had nothing in common with 'being careful', to be honest.

But staying here, avoiding danger, was against Siegfried's nature, and it was better to not have Rin's assistance. He could go all out at last, if necessary. And an Archer class Servant, who placed himself on such a perfect observatory point, could just blow Rider away right now, so killing him was clearly not what he intended to do.

"What does he want? Well, we'll see." He mounted the horse and laughed, thinking how the class container affected his decisions. As a Saber he would never do something so reckless, but a Rider class was certainly made of fearless adventures. Actually, he was glad that he managed to qualify. "Come, my friend. Another dragon awaits us. A golden one."

Grani's hooves clattered on asphalt, when the stallion galloped willingly toward the bridge, knowing no fear, just like his master.

* * *

"Are you sure that just giving him to me will not be a better option?" - Ilya asked, sitting by the table and slowly sipping hot chocolate. "This is good." She looked over her shoulder at Berserker, who was standing near the window with his arms crossed. Now it was obvious that the only reason, why he avoided entering the house, was the presence of Rider inside. "You want some?"

He needed a while to react, but shook his head eventually and focused on observing the surroundings through the open window.

Rin swallowed a portion of her drink and stared blankly at the table. This pose, this place… It used to be Archer's favorite spot, especially when they discussed their tactics. She just couldn't stand the view.

"The point is not simply in being a Master to a draining and partially insane Servant" - Scáthach explained calmly - "but in gaining as much control over his powers as we can."

"I agree," Saber added with an unusual passion. She just did not want to share her dear Master with anyone, especially with a guy, who challenged her three times already and did not let her win even once.

"But messing with his circuits is dangerous." Ilya was nervously tapping her fingers on the table. "He might lose even more abilities and sanity. We must treat both personalities…"

"Persons," Jeanne corrected mechanically. She was staring at the window, just like Berserker, sensing the presence of two Servants outside.

"…equally to achieve a satisfactory result. And be careful to not activate his Noble Phantasm by accident."

"Well, that would be troublesome, indeed." Scáthach smiled, although not with a true joy. "We must try anyway. But we should prepare him first as much as we can."

"I'm afraid we have not enough time. He's already calm enough." Ilya smiled to the mad Servant. "You will do your best, right?"

Berserker nodded slowly, a little tensed or maybe just worried. After all, they were discussing his uncertain future here… The sole fact, that he trusted them so much, was admirable.

"So, correct me, if I'm wrong…" Rin decided to join the conversation at last. "Basically, we are going to perform a totally improvised ritual – let's call it 'an alteration of the soul' – and taking a risk of making things worse, even to the point of blowing the city up?"

"Exactly," Scáthach and Ilya replied as one and exchanged suspicious gazes. Ruler could sense a declaration of the upcoming rivalry between the two.

"Ok," Rin seemed to be strangely satisfied with their explanation. "I'll better go to the basement and prepare the circle."

* * *

Lancer was observing Tohsaka mansion from the nearest roof. He was lying there almost all day, trying to decide if joining the others inside was really a good idea, when he noticed a suspicious movement in the shadows.

The female Servant with a long, purple hair, specialized in surprise attacks… It was actually an accident, that he managed to spot her when she did not want to be seen.

_This eye cover… What kind of Mystic Eyes she could possess?_ He was well trained in hunting monsters and he could feel a strong bloodsucking aura around her. _So a charm spell, huh? It would definitely fit such a psychopathic vampire lady. But I should use some more protection runes, just in case…_

Soon Cú Chulainn stood up and grabbed his spear. Assassin was a bonus, not his main target. But he's already promised her to taste Gáe Bolg, right? And he was good at keeping this kind of promises.

"Oh my, so many people gathered to observe this residence," he said loud enough to draw the enemy's attention, and jumped to the street. "We should set the order or something, it's getting really crowded here."

Assassin did not look surprised when she slowly turned around to face him.

"I must admit that I didn't expect you to be here." Her voice was emotionless, just like her usual expression. "So you're a Tohsaka's guard dog now?"

The smile he gave her was not very kind and it really reminded of an angry dog's grin.

"Not really. You act more like a dog now, sniffing around and barking at me."

"And you don't like it?" A strange, cruel smile formed on her lips. "Or you're so angry just because I interrupted your pleasant nap on the roof?"

Cú Chulainn did not bother to answer and launched an extremely fast attack instead. He knew the patterns of her movements well enough, after witnessing her last clash with Berserker in the temple. The speed was her main weapon – fully aware of this fact, he did not intend to let her outrun him or escape.

It was more interesting than he suspected. Every single blow of his spear should be fatal, yet she still lived, only slightly injured. Also the chain attached to her dagger proved to be unexpectedly troublesome to Lancer: by wrapping around the spear, it was slowing the warrior down. It was a barely noticeable difference in speed, but it seemed to be enough for Assassin to keep desperately dodging or repelling his strikes. It was more like acting or dancing than the actual fighting.

But Cú Chulainn was too experienced to be fooled by such a cheap tricks. After a short but fierce exchange of blows, he was able to predict several moves of his opponent forward. He cornered her easily just by changing the angle and speed of attacks.

"This is the last one," he declared with a wide smile, preparing the powerful finishing blow.

"As expected from a Lancer, you're giving me no choice," Assassin said calmly as usual, not even trying to dodge this time.

She removed the eye cover and stared at the blue Servant with her inhuman eyes, making him immediately froze in place and curse his bad luck.

"Tch, I missed." - it was anything he could say, completely focused on resisting her petrifying look and hoping that his protective runes will hold long enough to let him find a way out of this situation.

* * *

"Jeanne! I need to ask you something."

Rin caught Ruler on the corridor. It looked like she was following her, waiting for the best moment to start the conversation without witnesses.

"What is it, Rin?"

Surprisingly, Tohsaka hesitated for a long while, clearly not knowing how to speak out her mind properly and not be misunderstood.

"I'm tired of guessing and suspecting, it drains all my energy," she started at last, looking the blonde girl straight in the eyes. "I was trying to be strong and just. It's not fair, both for Berserker and for Rider… But I can't stand it any longer. I just… need to be sure." Her voice was filled with pain and desperation. "You know why, right? Could you please tell me his name?"

Jeanne shook her head categorically.

"I'm sorry, Rin. I cannot give you any advantage in this war, it's against the rules…"

"I swear I will not use this information in the war, it's only personal." Tohsaka raised her hand, making an official oath. "I can cast the geas on myself, if you don't believe me."

Ruler hesitated, a strange gleam appeared in her eyes. She turned around, unable to face Rin anymore.

"I… will consider this. But stop asking me now, ok?"

"Ok. I'm sorry," Rin said cheerfully, like nothing ever happened between them.

But Jeanne only lowered her head, embarrassed. She could clearly feel the sadness, which Rin tried to hide behind her usual 'Tohsaka pose', pretending to be much more ruthless and stronger than she actually was.

* * *

"So you've come," Gilgamesh said without true enthusiasm. He seemed to be almost bored to death; he barely glanced at Rider and returned to watching the magnificent view from the bridge. "You, the lowly so-called prince of mongrels from a small, barbaric country, should already know that you're no match for me."

"I'm well aware of my position. But it won't stop me from confronting you."

"Oh? But you haven't even drawn your sword yet?"

"You too, King of Heroes." Siegfried got off his horse and slowly walked up to Gilgamesh. He leaned against the railing and spent a moment just admiring the view in silence. From this place even a distant lights reflected in the river seemed simply stunning. "Besides, it's rude to draw a sword in the king's presence without being officially challenged to a duel. It's not how the royalty acts."

Archer's shoulders shook with suppressed laughter in reaction to Rider's slightly mocking tone.

"I knew you're a funny mongrel, but did not expect this much." When he took his hands out of his pockets, a little golden portal appeared in the air to his right. "Feel honoured, because I spent a while to know your legend. It was surprisingly disappointing, you failure. But I've found a fitting instrument of your destruction."

A golden hilt slipped out from the portal; Gilgamesh grabbed it and pulled out a fine longsword. It was a truly powerful weapon, but surprisingly simple, without any ornaments or other decoration. To Rider it looked awfully familiar.

"Gram?" Siegfried's eyes narrowed, when he took a closer look at the blade. "No, it's something more."

It was more like a concept of the blade that become Gram, which his father pulled out of the trunk of the great tree. From the shattered pieces of this original blade, Siegfried's favorite Balmung was forged. Watching the weapon of its origin brought back memories, especially those painful and unwanted.

"I've told you that I have something special for you in my treasury." Archer waved the sword several times. It was obviously one of his favorite weapons to use. "But now I'm no longer sure that you deserve to be killed by this sword. You've never meant to be a hero, your father was the one to slay the dragon with this blade. He had everything what's needed to be a true hero among humans: a passion, a hunger for life, a love for the world. You lack these things, even now. And you're not even brave, you just don't know fear. A substitute, a cheap replacement. A faker."

_Why did he tell me this? To enrage me or destroy my will to fight? What's the purpose of breaking something, that's already been broken?_

But he could feel a sudden wave of anger inside anyway. It turned out that he's more susceptible to this kind of mocking than he thought.

"See? The look you gave me right now, like a mindless beast! This is what I'm talking about." Gilgamesh smiled. "And you've died from a javelin stab, right? Like a wild animal, not a knight." His smile widened. "A fitting end for a failure like you."

Most of it was true, Siegfried came to the same conclusion long ago. But being scolded by someone as arrogant as this hedonistic prick, probably the oldest bully in the history of humankind, was too much, even for him.

"Tell me one thing: this treasury… is the embodiment of your legend, right?" – Rider asked calmly and shook his head, displeased. "It is a dragon sickness I see. You are like a greedy reptile, guarding a sparkling pile of gold. You've lost the true essence of life and in the end you have nothing but these meaningless items."

"Oh? Yours can only destroy. What does it say about you - that you are a murderer for hire?" A dangerous light sparkled in Archer's eyes. "And what do you have now? Your hollow ideals?"

Surprisingly, Siegfried only shrugged, trying to end the conversation.

"Who cares? In the Holy Grail War the best Servant is the one who is the most effective in killing, right?"

"An interesting point of view… for a mongrel." Gilgamesh laughed and dispelled the sword. "It is a paradox of your existence, don't you think? To be a realist and idealist at the same moment? How did you manage to reach such a pathetic state?"

"That's what I thought – it's impossible for us to understand each other," Rider said quietly, staring at Archer.

"I agree. Next time you'll die."

The dangerous red eyes met the cold blue eyes, but there was nothing more to say. The annoying hedonist and the walking wish-granting machine… it was obvious that a mutual disgust was the only feeling they could have for each other.

This time both Servants just turned around and walked away. But Rider was desperately trying to shake off the impression of being defeated before their battle even started.


	11. The Threads of Fate

_"_ _I'm terribly sorry for demolishing the house, Master." He looked around and took a deep breath. "Well… but it seems that it was already demolished before I came back, so… What's happened?"_

* * *

Kiritsugu just shook his head in disbelief, staring blankly at the monitor and trying to understand, what's just happened in front of the Tohsaka residence. He gladly picked up the phone from Maiya, who was right now near the place. He hoped to hear some reasonable explanation from her.

"You've seen it, Kiritsugu?" – the woman asked, even more disturbed than the Magus Killer.

"Yes, but I'm not sure…" He sighed, it was not even worth saying. "You've heard them? What did they talk about?"

"I really don't know, it was a very strange language. Like an older version of Irish or something?" Emiya could bet that Maiya shrugged just now, she wasn't really into this kind of stuff. "Anyway, the warrior with two red spears evidently used runes. Only a Command Seal saved Assassin from certain death. This woman was like… a cat, toying with a mouse, to show its cub how to hunt. And Lancer definitely was a kitten here." Kiritsugu nodded. It was a perfect description of the situation, no matter how absurd it sounded. "She… just yelled at him and punched him in the head! And then she's sent him somewhere."

"Yes, I can feel him, although barely. He's near Mount Enzou." Emiya stopped for a moment to reconsider his last decision. "Let him be. He'll gain their trust, so we'll be able to destroy them from the inside."

Kiritsugu glanced at his two remaining Command Seals. It was fortunate. Emiya already knew what orders will give Cú Chulainn, especially considering the fact, that his Servant's connection with a potential enemies has been revealed.

_So this strange, purple-haired woman is probably also a Servant and an old friend of Lancer from the same mythology… But who is her Master? She's with Tohsaka now, so…_

_Maybe Tohsaka family managed to bend the rules of this Grail War and summoned all three knight classes at once? The purple-haired woman was a Lancer then, and the nearly invincible guy_ __really_ has to be the second Saber._

Kiritsugu frowned, disturbed by his own theory. Does it mean that this extremely annoying red Archer of Tokiomi Tohsaka was also somewhere around?

Maiya must have come to the same conclusion already, because she asked all of a sudden:

"Any news about the enemy Saber?"

"He's been seen near the bridge. With golden Archer."

"Another alliance?"

"Who knows? It would be really bad."

Kiritsugu sighed, thanked Maiya for the report and disconnected. He drank some coffee, trying to organize the information and come up with a new plan.

Caster was defeated and Berserker must have vanished silently with her. Two Servants were already gone. Or rather three, because a Rider class Servant did not show up even once, probably already killed by one of the others. There was also a small chance that Tohsaka's Servant was a Rider class, not Saber, but it did not look this way, and it would not explain a sudden appearance of the second Lancer…

Fortunately, Ilya has not been recognized as a vessel. So the last serious obstacles were Ruler and this obscenely powerful Archer.

Too bad that they still were not sure, who was the Master of Assassin. Emiya glanced involuntarily at the monitor which was constantly showing the Matou residence, but the house was now empty and seemed to be abandoned. Just in case, he checked if the camera there is working properly, and he noticed a movement near the lens.

"A worm?"

It was definitely a worm, a very ugly one, fat and rounded. There was also a sign nearby, a message written with blood.

_We have the common enemy, Kiritsugu Emiya. Let's meet tomorrow night in the park._

* * *

"Yeah, I can feel it too, friend." Rider patted the horse's neck. "We can't let them touch us. Don't worry."

It was just like the birds said – a lot of shadows gathered around the ruins of Ryuudou Temple. They were much bigger than an average man, more or less humanoid in shape and clearly made of something more dangerous than darkness and magical energy.

And, what was even more surprising, none of them attacked. They just let Siegfried and his fearless stallion pass through the temple gate.

Rider looked around and sighed heavily. The signs of their last fight with Caster were still fresh here. To tell, that they left this place completely devastated, was a huge understatement.

There was a girl in the centre of this mess. She was sitting on the rubble and waving her bare feet in the air. The night was cold, but she was wearing only a simple white dress. Her partially violet, partially white hair was tangled and she looked lost in this abandoned, depressing place.

"Oh, it's you." She tilted her head and just one glance in her eyes - one violet and one disturbingly red - was enough for Rider to make sure that she already knows everything about him. "Good. You may wait here for her. She likes you and thinks about you. She'll be pleased to have you here, you'll keep her company."

"You mean Ruler?"- Siegfried asked, trying to find any sense in her mumbling. "There's no use, she answers only to the Grail."

The girl gave him a peaceful, but also a terribly sad smile.

"You don't understand, do you? I am the Grail."

* * *

Imagine the diagram of the human circulatory system, just like you can see it in every school. You can find a lot of big and small blood vessels there, forming a net of countless blue and red lines. It seems to be chaotic at first glance, but, after taking a closer look, a careful observer will see the hidden pattern, unique for every single creature.

For Rin Tohsaka the magic circuits of a Servant looked exactly the same, like a tangled strings. And the women magi gathered in the basement were like three Norns from Norse mythology, spinning the threads of fate.

Rin smiled to herself, amazed why she'd even thought about it. It must have been Siegfried's influence. Right, this was it. He had spoken with the dying dragon about many things and now his memories of this ancient knowledge came to Rin through their bond. It was amazing!

She did not know how the others visualized the ritual, but for Tohsaka it was enough to focus on her work. It was harder than she expected, and the fact that the three of them – the powerful, immortal queen of the Land of Shadows, the strongest magus of Fuyuki and the strongest Master in this Grail War – were already sweaty and exhausted, was at least disturbing. Rin even started to hesitate… Maybe this task is really too difficult for them?

"As I suspected – the double magic circuits," Scáthach said suddenly with a completely neutral expression, although her voice was trembling with exertion.

"But they're not just double, they're completely different!" Ilya was truly amazed. "No, wait… Not completely, some parts are the same. The core is the same, for sure! And… Is it?"

"Yes." A sudden excitement could be heard in Rin's voice as well. "The projection magic circuits. They seem to be infected, but not all of them. We should preserve as much as we can."

"So stop talking and do it. Quickly." Scáthach wiped the sweat from her forehead. It was a very exhausting operation, just like she suspected. But it shouldn't be THIS difficult – the nerves of this Servant were more tangled than the Gordian Knot!

The silence between them was heavy and humid, just like the air in the room, for almost two next hours.

"What's this? Ouch!" Something black started to spread from Berserker's circuits, burning Ilya's fingers.

"It's a materialized curse?" Rin's eyes widened, a pure terror on her face. "What in the hell! How?"

"Don't tell me that we activated his Noble Phantasm?"

"No, this is not it. But it's still bad." Scáthach frowned, trying to take back the control of the situation. "Why there must be always an Einzbern magus around to screw up something important?"

"It hurts!" – Ilya cried, desperately trying to withdraw her burned fingers.

"And… Jeanne? What are you d…? Jeanne?!" Toshaka turned pale but remained in place to support Scáthach with all her mana. "Oh no, this is bad, this is bad, this is bad!"

Then Ilya started to squeal painfully and the chaos began.

* * *

"Hey, Grail Lady! How many more do you have?"

The girl smiled to him, unexpectedly gently, and Rider was somehow sure that kindness was an important part of her true nature.

"Countless. So please surrender already and wait for her with me. I will not have to hurt you if you obey."

"That's what I've thought…" He sighed and cut another of her familiars in half. "I'm sorry but I have to refuse. Don't worry about me."

"Ok." She smiled again, but her gaze was empty this time, like her mind was already disconnected from the body. "Just tell me if you'll finally change your mind."

Rider looked around, searching for a possible way out. The barrier around the Temple was still active, so he had to leave the same way he came – through the main gate. He barely could see the exit from here, so many shadows guarded the way…

Actually, he had something in mind. He did not want to win, just to break through. Although he had never tried to activate Balmung's power from the horseback, especially in the move, but it seemed to be possible and definitely was worth trying. All he had to do was to trust the instinct of his mount and his own riding skills.

_Well, this is the first time for me, but they say that Rider class Servants have the most powerful Noble Phantasms, right?_

The magic was gathering slower than before, he was probably too far from Rin and was forced to use his own resources. He smiled. Tohsaka should be concentrated on her important task now, he wouldn't dare to drain her for such a trivial matter.

Balmung soon started to glow with a golden light, calm and beautiful. Siegfried was sure that it will work. After all, in his hands it was the holy blade, long ago connected to the power of the sun – what more is needed to dispel the shadows?

"…and the world will now reach the sunset."

Sakura was observing his reckless charge with a bored expression and evidently did not intend to intervene in any way. She must have been sure that his resistance was meaningless and that it was only a matter of time for him to meet his fate.

"Balmung!"

The wave of energy smashed everything's on its way and Siegfried followed it without a pause. Grani reached the stairs just in time, a second before shadow giants managed to regenerate and block the gate again.

"Good job, friend! Now let's go home, I have definitely enough for today."

He did not have to say it, to be honest. The stallion did not even try to slow down, determined to leave this cursed place as soon as possible.

* * *

_I really don't understand, why he's resisting so much. It would be easier for him to give up._

Jeanne blinked, utterly surprised.

_From where did this thought come from?_

She would never think this way. It was obvious that Berserker did the right thing. Being forced to share one material body with his twisted, almost demonical alter ego was difficult and tragic enough, and Ruler couldn't not imagine the other way than to resist this evil and overwhelming madness.

_But why? He should rather let go, enjoy himself._

_Because he doesn't want to hurt anyone._

_But he's hurting himself, right? So it's useless._

She smiled, completely sure that she's right.

Why she was smiling? Who was smiling, if she did not want to?

"And… Jeanne? What are you d…? Jeanne?!" A familiar voice was calling her, a voice of a good friend. No, it was rather a voice of her greedy rival, who wanted to take all the best guys for herself! "Oh no, this is bad, this is bad, this is bad!"

Her heart was beating like crazy and she couldn't catch a breath, terrified but also strangely excited.

_Am I going to go mad, just like our Servant?_

"Jeanne! Jeanne!" She couldn't recognize this voice, but this one too sounded familiar. Right, it was the pagan queen, the wise and brave one, who wanted to help, although she had no obligation to do so. No, it was a voice of this annoying bitch, who did not know her place! "Give me the Command Seals, quickly!"

But of course, she should do like this woman said. Something wrong was happening to her right now and she could not let the Command Seals be lost or used improperly because of her sudden indisposition. She reached out her hand and then…

_This mud… This black, ugly substance... It burns!_

_So good… It feels so good to be free at last!_

_It's just like back then, in flames! This pain…_

_There's so many things I would like to do. So many people I would like to punish. So many wishes to be granted!_

She smiled viciously, finally free from stupid little things like morality or conscience. Who needs them anyway?

* * *

"Rin? So quiet in here…"

Siegfried entered the house with Balmung in his hand. Something was clearly wrong, not only unnaturally quiet, but also…

"Trace on."

It was a very nice surprise attack, but it would be even more effective from a distance. Still, when the enemy Servant jumped from the stairs, he managed to reach Rider's back with one of his twin blades and leave a thin trace of blood on the edge of his vulnerable spot.

"Berserker?" The mad warrior was really hard to recognize now. He was wearing only a black armor and there were even more strange tattoos on his skin. "What the…"

_What's happened to his eyes?_ The left one was like a circle of gold surrounded by the complete darkness and Rider was sure, that this eye sees much more than it seems. But it also made this guy look even more insane than before.

They've already demolished the corridor and, with a terrible noise, came to the one of the rooms. Siegfried was so damn tired after a long night of fighting far away from Rin, that he could barely keep up with this strange warrior. His twin blades, slightly curved and kept in black and white tones, were magnificent, yet fortunately not enough to break through his dragon skin.

But a wardrobe was not durable enough to withstand their fierce exchange of blows. The same with the table. And chairs. And with a wall to the next room, smashed by Balmung, when Rider tried to block the last blow and make a strategic retreat to the stairs.

"Stop, you idiots! Save your strength!"

Rider was first to obey Rin's order and he slowly stepped back, but he was watching his opponent carefully, irritated by his mocking smile. The white-haired guy spread his arms in a gesture of surrender and dispelled his weapons, making everyone even more annoyed by his disrespectful and provoking behavior.

Siegfried was first to ignore him and try to break the awkward silence.

"I'm terribly sorry for demolishing the house, Master." He looked around and took a deep breath. "Well… but it seems that it was already demolished before I came back, so… What's happened?"

Rin had not enough strength to roll her eyes, so she only sighed and headed slowly to the living room.

"Come. Both of you."

Scáthach was lying on the couch with a cold compress on her head. She looked pale and truly exhausted, but it did not stop her from being aggressive towards her Servant. The warrior queen gave him a very angry gaze. He just sighed heavily in response and sat in the corner of the room with his eyes closed, probably to minimize the cost of mana she had to provide to keep him materialized. He didn't speak or move without permission or command to do so from this moment.

"Something went wrong with the ritual," Rin explained, although it was clear for Rider from the beginning. "Ruler, Saber and partially Ilya, were affected by the curse from the Grail's mud, and went on rampage. The mud from the corrupted Grail was in Berserker's magic circuits, but Jeanne was probably infected sooner." Tohsaka noticed that Rider did not look very surprised by this conclusion. "We had to wake up Berserker sooner and fight, then Jeanne got away and then you came back." She shrugged, having nothing more to say.

"And Saber?"

"We had to knock her out for a while. It was difficult, demanded the use of one of Ilya's Command Seals… and a lot of fighting. But she should be fine when she'll awake. They both should."

Siegfried could hardly imagine the chaos which lead to this mess. It was truly admirable, that Scáthach and her strange Servant managed to keep raging Saber and Ruler in check, even if only for a short while.

"But why in the hell did you fire this thing inside the house?" The warrior queen sighed heavily, still mad at Berserker or whoever he was now. "Never do that again, understood?"

The white-haired guy nodded reluctantly. They had no time to examine him yet but it was even more than obvious that he was not the same person anymore. He still made an oath, both to Ilya and Rin as his connection to this world, and seemed to obey Scáthach, at least as his mana donor. But his insultingly nonchalant attitude was getting on everyone's nerves equally.

"Actually, we were lucky that you were far enough to not get affected, Siegfried" Rin said and sat on the chair. "But you too look awful… What's happened?"

He was not sure, if hitting them with some bad news was the best idea right now, but there was no time to waste, so he just sat next to his Master and started to tell his story.


	12. The Calm Before the Storm

_"_ _I like it. After all, this is how men should approach the queen. On their knees."_

* * *

"Becoming a king means no longer being human."

The wind was blowing gently, caressing the grass, and the sky, partially covered by the heavy clouds, was golden, like the hilt of sword stuck in a stone.

She grabbed the weapon without hesitation and felt her fingers burning, infected with a black mud. The curse was spreading like a disease through her body, the surroundings and finally through the world, destroying everything's on its way.

Ilya opened her eyes, experiencing the worst headache in her life. It was only a dream. A dream about the ideal kingdom. A beautiful, naive dream, that ended on the field of corpses.

But Ilya's fingers were still painfully burnt. Someone was carefully changing the dressing on her wounded hands. The injuries were not very serious, but her skin was not as white as before, covered with some strange shadows up to the elbows.

_Wh…? Right, the ritual. I can't remember a thing, except the pain…_

Still a little dizzy, she looked at the one, who was taking care of her bandages. The white-haired guy in a strange, black armor raised his head to look at her. His left eye was black and scary, like a gate leading straight to the abyss.

_Huh? Clairvoyance of an Archer class? But what can he truly see with this corrupted eye?_

"Ilya?" Berserker was clearly worried by her strange expression.

She did not expect him to speak and his voice brought tears to her eyes.

"It hurts? I'm sorry…"

"No, it's fine. I'm just… happy to hear your voice."

He smiled, but there was still a sadness hidden in his eyes. No, it was rather a feeling of guilt for infecting her with the curse from his magic circuits. Ilya was impressed that he was able to function normally, having something so painful and terrible within his core.

"Don't be sorry, it's not your fault."

He nodded hesitantly and let the girl hug him as much as she wants. The truth was that they did not need words at all, the bond between them was deep and strong. Only siblings could share something like that… even if it is just a memory, an echo from another time, another place.

* * *

Rin was trying to focus on spying and gathering information, but it was impossible now. Both Berserker and Rider insisted on repairing the damage after their unexpected fight. They were doing quite well and even managed to cooperate at last, but not without some minor quarrels and horrible noise. Even now Tohsaka could hear the sounds of hammer downstairs. She could not rest or cast any spell right now, so she sighed heavily and left the room, to check how her guest are doing.

They were still resting and licking their wounds, all tired and somehow depressed after the failed ritual and Jeanne's transformation. Tohsaka ended up with almost all her magical energy drained out and she still could not regain her full power. Scáthach was in even worse condition, although she pretended to be fine. The burden of keeping Berserker materialized rested on her shoulders now, not to mention the Command Seals she received from Ruler. She had two for Berserker, two for Lancer and one for Assassin. Unfortunately Jeanne still had the other spells, so neither Rider, nor Saber was safe and free from her possible influence.

Speaking of Saber… another troll was the last thing Rin needed in her house, truly. Arturia was even more tyrannical than before, and – although it was hard to believe – much more competitive. Yet she did not feel responsible for the devastation of the basement, when she was temporarily insane. She explained that it's not a suitable job for a king and there's no use for her to join the repair crew, if other Servants already volunteered.

Tohsaka sighed again, lost in thoughts. In the next room she found Berserker, who was painting the freshly renovated wall. He regained much control over his shattered mind, but some things about him were still strange and difficult to tolerate. Rin would say that he's now the proper Berserker class Servant. Or more like an Archer class turned into Berserker by force. Anyway, it was much better than before.

Tohsaka was watching him for a while from the doorway, analyzing her own feelings. She promised, both to Archer and Rider, to always do what her heart tells her. How could she act so strangely before? How could she hesitate even for a moment? She will never break her promise or disappoint them again, no way!

She finally dared to admit, that she missed her Archer so much, that it hurt. And now she had to stop worrying and open her heart to the joy associated with his return.

Even if it was too late to make things work the same way as before, it was still worth trying, right?

With this final conclusion, Tohsaka took a deep breath and entered the room at last.

"Archer."

He turned around instinctively and met her warm gaze. Rin walked up to him and hugged him without a warning.

"Welcome back, Archer," she said, her voice trembling, full of longing and happiness.

Berserker froze and was standing like this for a while, clearly with no idea how to react. Then he just let go and hold her, with his eyes closed and a thin smile on his face.

"I'm home, Rin."

Siegfried, determined to guard his Master always and everywhere, was watching them through the open door and he smiled gently at the view. He stepped back carefully to not disturb their reunion.

He had no grudge against this guy, despite the fact that he had tried to kill him not so long ago. How could he, when his presence was making Rin so happy? He's already loved his Master too much to make her feel sad or lonely ever again.

* * *

"Are you feeling better now?"

"Yes, I'm completely healed already. Thank you, Shirou." Assassin turned around and smiled to the boy, truly grateful. "You've improved as a Master lately. Soon you'll be a fine magus, I'm sure of it."

Shirou smiled and sat on the edge of the roof next to his Servant, watching her long hair blowing in the wind. For the past few days he felt like he was an assassin himself, outlawed and chased, both by Zouken and enemy Masters. He and wounded Medusa were constantly running from shadow to shadow, frequently changing their hideouts and destroying spying familiars. Shirou already knew that jade birds belongs to Tohsaka, but it looked like for now she was only gathering information and did not plan any action against him or any other participant.

The one who sent bats after him was not so predictable and friendly. Shirou was attacked by a sniper several times and he suspected that this mysterious ambusher was somehow related to Master of Lancer. What was his name? Emiya? The boy was wondering why this guy pursued him so stubbornly and mercilessly. If it wasn't a vengeance for their last clash with Lancer, then why? Maybe he protected another Master? Berserker and Rider were the weakest against Medusa, but their alliance with Emiya seemed doubtful. Then Saber? Most likely…

Shirou sighed and stared blankly at the town below. Assassin leaned over him and covered him with a jacket.

"The wind is cold, you'll get sick," she said and ran her fingers through his white hair. "You miss Sakura, right?"

He nodded. Sakura told them to act separately for a while, until she'll finish some important task. Kirei offered her a new Servant and, despite the fact, that Shirou could not force himself to trust this strange priest, it really could be an advantage for them. A chance to survive this mess, to be precise.

Shirou believed in Sakura, she was stronger than she looked. She told him to meet near the gate to Ryuudou Temple tomorrow night, so nothing will stop him from getting there on time.

"Sakura will be fine, don't worry, Shirou."

"I know, but… something else bothers me even more." He stared at Assassin with an incredibly sad expression. "Why don't you trust me? I've already figured out, that you have some deal with the priest... You could just tell me everything."

"Yes." Medusa tensed, visibly worried. "I was to finalize our agreement but Lancer interrupted." She clenched her fists in silent anger. "This is why Zouken still lives and chase you. Because I failed as a Servant."

"No, you didn't," Shirou said honestly and grabbed her hand. "I know that words are nothing more than words and they alone will not change anything… but I will prove it soon."

"Prove what?"

"That you can trust me. That I can protect you. If the deeds follow my declaration, you will have no choice but to believe in me. At least as much, as I believe in you."

He was so honest and determined, that Assassin blushed, touched and amazed.

"Shirou…"

"No." He shook his head categorically. "No excuses, no complaining. I am the Master here, remember?"

The way he said it made Medusa chuckle and Shirou had to admit that it was an unusual but a very pleasant sound.

For now they just had to survive the night. Just one more night. Tomorrow they'll meet again and decide, what to do next.

* * *

Siegfried almost finished repairing the stairs. The blue dragon circuits were shining on his bare chest, while he was working. He sighed, irritated by the trickle of blood, flowing constantly on his back, where Berserker cut him. Due to the curse, this shallow and meaningless scratch near his weak point was not healing well, even with a magical support from Rin. Good that a Servant can't just bleed out to death, but still it was annoying as hell.

Scáthach whistled through her teeth, not in a very royal manner, when she entered the room with a clear view on the corridor and the stairs.

"Nice!" She sat on the couch and crossed her legs. She was staring at Siegfried with a strange, mocking expression, like a she-wolf watching the chicken parading just before her nose. "Much better than TV."

"I'm sorry, it was hot." Rider said honestly and grabbed his shirt.

"Do I look like complaining?" She smiled viciously. "Better put it away, don't ruin my fun."

Rider chuckled but he put the shirt down eventually and got back to work. It went relatively smoothly and there was not even much sawdust around.

"You're a carpenter?" Ilya came in with some juice and started to pour it into glasses.

"I was rather a blacksmith when I was young, but I can handle some wood too." He shrugged. "It was common in my time to build a house and take care of all the stuff by yourself."

"But you were a prince, right?" - Ilya asked and gave him a full glass. He took it gladly. "You had no servants or maids? Even I had some in the Einzbern castle."

"Well, I had some, but later. I was raised far away from the court, in the woods. I got used to do everything myself there." He smiled, remembering something. "Those were the good old days, truly."

"What, do you regret becoming a famous dragon slayer?" Scáthach was sipping her juice like it was an expensive exotic drink, not just an orange nectar from the nearest family market.

"No. I regret nothing." He was not lying, the warrior queen was sure of it, and she smiled. "I used to think that some later disasters were caused by my deeds, but the truth is that I wasn't this important. Nobody is. Now I know that and all we can is to do what we believe is right."

"That's all?" Ilya sat next to Siegfried on the freshly repaired step. "It seems to be so simple…"

"It is," Scáthach said with a strange, nostalgic expression. "It is, Ilyasviel."

They all fell silent for a long time, immersed in their thought, and the steady hammer hitting was the only sound to be heard in the room.

"Well, I'll be going." Scáthach stood up swiftly and stretched herself. "I promised Berserker another training." The truth was rather that the troublesome Servant was more obedient when he was tired.

"May I watch?" – Siegfried asked unexpectedly, driving the last nail. The stairs will need some more finishing treatments later, but they were usable at least.

"Sure." A strange, dangerous light glowed in the eyes of the warrior queen, when she came up with a sudden idea. "Or maybe you would like to train as well?"

"A sparring? Why not." He smiled. "Spear-wielders are the most troublesome. It will be fun."

"Of course." Her voice was full of bloodlust and it seemed to still growing, making even Ilya shiver. "Let's prepare."

* * *

"So sad that Kotomine did not let Berserker finish you back then. Now I have to do it myself."

Cú Chulainn had no to time to even wipe the sweat from his forehead, totally focused on the fight. Archer keep firing countless weapons and Lancer keep dodging and repelling them, closing the distance step by step, trick by trick. Activation of his Noble Phantasm was nearly impossible in this situation, so he had to play with his speed and experience, and he was doing well so far.

How many hours have passed already? Four? Six? He was not sure, but this fight was too long and tiring. He was using all his abilities to fool his opponent and engage him in melee combat… and was pushed back every time he managed to do so. And again. And again. It was hard to tell, if it will be Lancer to run out of tricks first, or the King of Heroes of his weaponry.

But one thing was already certain for Cú Chulainn – he knew that if he stops moving, he'll die.

Scáthach had sent Lancer here only to observe, it was Gilgamesh who started this fight. The golden Servant came to the temple a moment after the girl contracted to Ruler left, like he was ordered to look for her. But he spotted Lancer nearby and attacked the other Servant instead, forcing him to participate in this endless circle of assaults and withdrawals.

First he was doing it for fun, but he seemed to be more frustrated with every passing hour. After all, even the best entertainment can turn into a nightmare, if it takes too long.

"You jump like a flea!" Angry Archer raised his hand to open the Gate of Babylon further, but this time it was somehow special. Cú Chulainn could not tell, what exactly was different than before, but he was sure, that a completely new kind of weapon will be used against him. "Stop moving, you irritating mongrel. You've bored me already. Disobedient dogs should be kept on a chains."

Lancer, struck by a feeling, that whatever will come out from these portals now, will become an instrument of his doom, clenched his teeth and retreated in a great hurry. He felt utterly frustrated, because running away like that was totally not like him. But the chance of victory was too low now to risk the more important mission to fail.

He should report to Scáthach first and then they will all work together to achieve victory. The situation was serious enough for Cú Chulainn to believe, that even his odd Master would not delay an official alliance with Tohsaka anymore.

* * *

"Look, everyone! I will show you a very useful maneuver to fight an opponent bigger than you."

All inhabitants of the Tohsaka residence gathered in the garden. Rin and Berserker were less enthusiastic about this sparring idea, but they decided to observe it anyway. Saber was watching the duel from the grass, with an emotionless expression, but she was the only one to openly eat popcorn during the show.

The warrior queen started the lesson. First she lured her opponent to the chosen position and forced him to focus on defense. Then she suddenly targeted his legs, using one of her spears as a leverage, to disable him.

"See? Every warrior should fall over now." But Siegfried was still standing – moreover, he already managed to go back to defensive position. Scáthach winced, surprised and angry. "Well, except this guy."

"Yep, my Rider is the best." Rin smiled and gave Siegfried a thumbs up sign of approval.

"It's nothing, really." He shrugged and improved his grip on Balmung's hilt. "I will not be fooled by the same trick twice, that's all."

"Oh? Who was the first opponent to do this to you?"

"The warrior queen from Iceland, the famous shieldmaiden. No man could defeat her."

Scáthach noticed a little bit of longing and affection in his voice. She also got nostalgic for a moment – this story sounded strangely familiar to her.

"So… Let's get serious, shall we?" She thrust one spear towards Rider without warning. The tip of her weapon bounced harmlessly from his hard, dragon skin. "Ah, so good that I don't have to hold back, you won't be wounded anyway."

"Wait a minute… Don't use my Servant as your punching bag!" Tohsaka's face turned red in anger and Berserker chuckled discreetly behind her back. "And you should rest while you still can, don't you think?"

"Come on, Riiiin!" Siegfried blocked all the blows, which were coming at him now with an enormous speed. "It's just fun."

"Sure." Tohsaka did not looked convinced, but she stopped complaining, captivated by the show.

The warrior queen had the significant advantage over Rider, both with speed and range of her weapons. He had to adapt his tactics quickly to her unusual style. It was just like with a little, aggressive dog attacking a wild boar, tormenting it with tons of little bites. At least until Siegfried finally managed to reach her with the tip of Balmung and knock her off balance for a second needed to prepare a counterattack. Now it was his turn to show off and corner her with a series of extremely strong blows. Scáthach avoided all of them with her almost acrobatic skills and lured his opponent into a trap, but he noticed it just in time and jumped back right before the final blow.

"Whoa!" Ilya clapped her hands, excited. Even Berserker seemed to be pleased by the show. Only Saber remained emotionless, slowly chewing her popcorn.

The audience held its breath, feeling a growing bloodlust within both warriors. They sped up ridiculously and soon it was almost impossible to notice single moves in their fierce clash.

But, after a few minutes of this nearly impossible exchange of blows, they suddenly stopped. When the dust fell, it was obvious that the fight was over. Siegfried was disarmed and on his knees, one red spear was pointed at his throat.

"I can see that your man pride is not damaged at all… Good." Scáthach placed her right feet on Siegfried's shoulder, and 'caressed' his skin with the tip of the spear. "I like it. After all, this is how men should approach the queen. On their knees."

Rider chuckled in response. They both were breathing heavily and the air between them seemed even more tensed than during the duel.

"I just got used to get my ass kicked by a woman with a spear, I suppose." Siegfried smiled widely, like a young boy who's having great fun, and bowed slightly. "It was a pleasure to lose to you."

"Splendid," Arturia said suddenly in a kingly manner and nodded approval. "But one thing is unforgivable." She stood up slowly and ended after a long, dramatic pause: "The dinner is delayed because of you!"

Scáthach blinked and Tohsaka rolled her eyes. This 'new' Arturia was really a pain in the ass.

"Please, give me back my old Saber…" Ilya lowered her head and cried hopelessly, but no one could relieve her suffering.

* * *

Two pretty girls were walking down the promenade, eating burgers and fries. The street was empty at this hour, but they seemed to not care for company or sense of security, while moving slowly from one streetlight to another.

"Tell me, Sakura… Is your Shirou handsome?" The blonde girl in black clothes licked her lips and wiped the ketchup from her chin. There was something obscene in her behavior, a manifestation of defiance in her every move.

"Very handsome." The other girl, who was trying to hide her two-colored hair under the hood, swallowed the last bite and gave her companion a very unpleasant gaze. She put her hands in the pockets of her loose grey sweatshirt. "I won't allow you to touch him, so don't even try."

"Sure, I will have my own plaything soon." Jeanne, or whoever was now inhabiting the homunculi body, smiled viciously. "It would be nice to have some handsome guys around, don't you think?"

"Yeah. We deserve it. But father Kotomine won't let you keep your pet alive. This one is to be used as a weapon and then sacrificed with the others for the Grail."

"Do I look like someone who wants to follow the priest's orders?" Corrupted Ruler laughed, it was obvious that she did not intend to obey anyone. First she objected even to call Sakura her Master, but the girls found a common language soon and decided to enjoy their time together, even if only for a while.

"But Archer…"

"Sakura, have you forgot about the Command Seals on my back? I don't fear this arrogant golden boy, I can order him to commit suicide at any moment."

"But you don't have all the spells, right?"

"Yeah, that stupid girl must have given them to the pagan witch… But it doesn't matter." She grabbed Sakura by the arm and clung to her affectionately. "I always get what I want. You should try it too."

Sakura tensed, like she was trying to remember something important, but she gave up eventually. It did not sound like her, not at all. But when Ruler said it, it seemed so simple and obvious, so…

"But father Kotom…"

"The priest can wait. You're the most important person here. You don't have to obey him. Or anyone!"

It was tempting. So tempting, that Sakura had to take a deep breath and accept this complete new feeling. The air in her lungs was so fresh, so different than before… Like she was born again, free from doubts, fears and despair.

"But… remember that tomorrow we must meet with Shirou."

Jeanne nodded and whistled cheerfully. She held her Master's arm even tighter and gently kissed her cheek.

"I will show you the true meaning of having fun, Sakura. Just trust me."


	13. I Believe In You

 

_"_ _No, no, no!" Rin tried to help, but Berserker held her tight and did not let her move even a step forward. "What's happening?"_

* * *

Rin dreamt of dragons. It was a truly terrifying dream, a nightmare full of pain. She was screaming in the flames. So hot, so hopeless. But she had to keep fighting. Forward, forward. Because it had to be done.

And then her vision turned red. Blood was everywhere, hot, with characteristic metallic smell. The touch of powerful magic on her skin… It was awful.

She woke up, hoarse and angry. One glance at the window was enough to tell that the sunset was near. So it's about time then.

_Siegfried, damn you!_ She sighed, staring blankly at the ceiling. _Truly… why this guy had to push himself into such extremes? Well, not that Archer is different in this matter. Why am I compatible only with stubborn fools?_

Tohsaka stood up and headed straight to the phone. She felt like something final was about to happen and it was the perfect moment to call her mother.

They talked about the war, the ritual and return of Archer, as well as about simple family matters. The warm voice from the other side of the phone calmed Rin down a little, but Aoi could easily feel that something was wrong.

"What's with this voice?" – she asked all of a sudden, to catch Rin off guard.

"What do you mean, Mom?"

"You sound exactly like your father when we had spoken the last time. This is not a goodbye, right?"

Tohsaka did not know how to answer, so she remained silent for a while, long enough for her mother to start worry.

"Rin. You have our Archer back. And your invincible Rider protects you. You have friends and allies, you can do it. Just believe in yourself and these nice guys." Aoi's voice was calm and encouraging, Tohsaka could easily imagine her smile. "I believe in you."

"Thank you, Mom. And I need to tell you that… Sakura is involved too."

A long moment of heavy silence, like the person on the other side held her breath.

"I see." Another long pause made Rin's heart ache. Aoi just repeated what she had said before, but more firmly and faithfully: "I believe in you."

There was nothing more to tell. After all, Tohsaka promised to follow her heart, no matter how difficult it would be.

* * *

Rider needed a moment of solitude to collect his thoughts and calm his heart before the upcoming storm. He materialized on the roof of the Tohsaka residence, but it seemed that he was not the only one who had come up with this idea.

Saber was already sitting there, hugging a few bottles of wine and staring at the street below.

"May I join you?"

Arturia nodded and gave him one of the bottles. The next one she handed to Berserker, who showed up without a word just a second later.

The three companions were sipping their drinks in silence. The sky above their heads was slowly changing its color to gray. A sudden blast of mana nearby told them that at least one more Servant shared their gloomy mood today.

"Oh, it seems that Lancer finally decided to join us." Siegfried welcomed their guest with a wide smile. Berserker totally ignored Cú Chulainn, focused on his drink, but Saber tensed visibly, ready to draw her sword. She was the only one here, who had never fought or even met him before. "Calm down, Saber, he's not the one to stab someone in the back."

"Exactly." The blue spearman gave them a thin smile; it was obvious that he enjoyed the company of honorable and honest people. "Don't tell me that you knew I've been watching you…"

"All the time." Rider gave him one of the bottles.

Lancer sat next to him with a heavy sigh and took a sip.

"The clouds are gathering," he noticed, watching the sky. "But the view is magnificent anyway."

"Ah, the sky is always the same." A little bit of nostalgia in Saber's voice. "Some things never change."

"Some things do change. Too bad that there are not many good warriors in this modern world," Rider noticed, a little disappointed.

"But there are still some fine women." Lancer smiled like a wild animal. "Unfortunately, I had no time to approach them."

"True. But I've never been good in this 'flirting' thing." Siegfried confessed with a sad smile. "I've always wondered, how to deal with this problem. If I say that a woman is beautiful and wise, she'll think: 'He thinks I'm an idiot and likes only my appearance?' And if I say that she's wise and beautiful, she will start to wonder, what's wrong with her look, to complement her mind first."

"I've never thought about it." Lancer stroked his chin. "Have you ever tried to call a lady 'cute'? It should solve all your problems."

"Well, it's seems to be so easy and it probably is, but definitely not with this lady."

"You're wrong." Saber shook her head. She sounded like an expert, being the only female in this company. "Every woman will be pleased by such words. She may pretend to be angry or even protest fiercely, but deep inside she'll be happy to hear it."

Even Berserker nodded, a faint but honest smile formed on his lips.

"I see. Well, not that I will have time to try…" Siegfried laughed, closing his eyes. "Speaking of which… No one knows what may happen, we may even turn against our Masters, allies and friends. Or attack innocent bystanders. It would be a great shame for a heroes like you to end like a corrupted beasts. I'm sure that none of you wants it."

"What's your point?" Arturia raised one eyebrow, intrigued.

"I will not be able to forgive myself if I ever betray you. So… I have a favor to ask you, my fellow champions. If I ever become a monster, please slay me, like true heroes should."

Saber and Lancer looked at him, sad and concerned. They knew that the curse of the Grail was not a thing any Servant could fight alone.

"Fine." Cú Chulainn was the first one to answer and reach out his hand to Rider. "But under one condition. When the time comes, you'll do the same to me."

"Deal." Siegfried accepted and they shook hands. Saber joined, with a kingly nod. Only Berserker ignored them completely. His black eye was moving quickly, observing something distant and unnoticeable for the rest of them.

"You too." Siegfried poked him in the shoulder. "I don't know what you think of yourself, but if Rin trusts you, it means that you're one of the good guys. I believe in you, at least."

Berserker looked at him like at an annoying brat, surprised, that Rider dared to touch him.

"Idiot," the black-eyed Servant murmured, but added his hand to the circle, although reluctantly.

And the four heroes made a solemn oath, watching the sunset and preparing for battle, which may be their last.

* * *

"Fine, I've had enough already Trace on!" Shirou projected his shield, his ultimate protection, the true origin carved in his soul. "Come, mage! I will not run anymore!"

He was so close! Sakura was waiting for him up these stairs – nothing will stop him to see her now. Shirou did not like to fight or command his Servant to attack people, but he reached his limit. He's been chased by this magus like a little rabbit, but now he just did not have a time for fun anymore.

_Assassin?_

_Yes, Shirou. I've found the woman._

_Good, go on. But try to not kill her._

_Understood._

A short series from the gun and a woman's scream came from behind the trees.

_One out, Master._

_Good._

With Maiya unable to continue the fight and only one Servant present, Kiritsugu was most likely doomed. Assassin jumped at him with an enormous speed, like a cat on a helpless mouse. Emiya was ready to use another Command Seal, but fortunately Lancer showed up just in time, sensing the danger. He blocked the blow halfway and pushed the enemy Servant few meters back.

"What now, Master?" Cú Chulainn sighed heavily. "Any orders?"

Two Servants and their Masters were facing each other from the safe distance, trying to figure out the best tactic to defeat the enemy, but none really hurried to start the duel.

"Why have you stopped? It was so amusing… this little family conflict."

Kotomine was coming down the stairs from the temple, irritating as usual.

"What are you talking about? A family?" Kiritsugu held him at gunpoint and it was truly a miracle, that he did not fire yet, facing the false priest again after all those years.

"I would be really happy to explain it, but it seems that all the actors came to the scene at last."

"What?" Shirou glanced over his shoulder just to see three other Masters coming, to make the situation even more complicated than it already was.

"What's happening here?! Kirei? And Shirou Matou?" Rin narrowed her eyes, trying to understand, what's going on here.

"Kiritsugu too? Wait… Shirou?" Ilya whispered, utterly surprised. "So it is you…" She gave Berserker a worried look, but Servant only winked knowingly and changed his position, so he could guard his Master, if necessary. He did not seem affected by the boy's presence at all.

_This is bad,_ Emiya thought, focused mostly on Kirei. _Too many Servants around. I need to just finish the priest and get out of here._

"What's this?" Rider asked, looking at the sky, which seemed to be more red than grey now.

The fire glow lit the sky above the temple and the smell of smoke seeped up their nostrils. They've never seen such a great fire before.

"It's the ultimate punishment, the flames of vengeance." A strange light glowed in the priest's eyes. "In short, your dear Sakura just burned old Zouken at the stake."

"What?!" Rin and Shirou asked simultaneously, both totally shocked. "Sakura would never…"

"Why not?" Kotomine gave them a thin, mocking smile. "She's connected directly to the Grail now, she can do what she wants."

"You…" Assassin's voice, although quiet as usual, was filled with hatred and rage. She charged at the priest with an obvious intention to kill. "Lying bastard."

"What have you done to Sakura! Assassin, wait!"

But Medusa already reached the priest, her chain-dagger clashed with his Black Keys with a clear sound.

Also at this moment Kiritsugu decided to fire again. He was retreating slowly, trying to take the enemy down, but Kirei managed to block the bullets, using his Command Seals as a shield.

"Lancer, go!" Emiya was ready to end this farce, but a new strong aura appeared and in an instant changed the balance of power on this improvised battlefield.

* * *

"So you've decided to show up eventually?" - Kotomine asked, now safe behind the back of a noble figure, which materialized from the golden mist.

"I can't just ignore so many mongrels, who are trying to kill you, can I?" Gilgamesh had no respect even for his Master. He looked down at the gathered Heroic Spirits. "Well, well, I've promised you something, remember, dragon boy? The dog will be next. And… Saber." A sincere disgust on Archer's face when he looked at the King of Knights. "You have no shame to show yourself before me in such disgraceful state? If you really have any honor left, you should end your pathetic existence just now, abomination!"

"Saber, don't!" Ilya stopped her Servant, feeling growing fury and a violent maelstrom of mana around Arturia. "Please, just guard me now."

"Yes, Saber. I will be the one to face this weirdo." Scáthach stepped forward. "I deserved a bit of entertainment as well, don't you think?"

"Oh? The undead witch?" Archer gave her a wide, unpleasant smile. "That would be interesting."

_This is madness_ , Kiritsugu thought, slowly stepping back and reloading his gun. _Even worse than in the docks, ten years ago_.

His mind was working on the highest speed, trying to find the way out of the situation. The golden Servant was the biggest threat now and his Master must be eliminated immediately, but…

_Maiya is wounded after Assassin's attack. I cannot do anything while standing in the centre of this mess. We must regroup and take Ilya out of here now_.

So Lancer was the first to leave the scene, forced to obey the order of his calculative and cunning Master.

"Tch." He felt terrible, leaving Scáthach in such an important moment, but he obeyed and turned away with a heavy sigh. "Just kick his ass, teacher. I believe in you."

"No doubt you do, Sétanta." She smiled gently. "Shame you will not see it."

* * *

Shirou hesitated for a moment, but he finally made his decision to leave Assassin behind and run up the stairs to the temple. Medusa was determined to end Kotomine's existence in great pain, even if she had to break through the protection of the King of Heroes.

Rin clenched her teeth and followed Shirou without a second thought. Rider clearly was not going to let her go there alone. Berserker seemed torn between the desire to protect Tohsaka and the possibility of accepting the challenge of going all out against Gilgamesh, who was staring at him with a wide, mocking smile. The black-eyed warrior was ready to act, but he waited for the command from his Master.

"Stay away." Scáthach stopped him with the tip of her spear. "I gave you an order already, remember?"

"Yes. Good luck." He nodded and followed the others, obedient but visibly worried.

"Are you sure that you don't need any assistance?" Ilya was still there, not sure what to do.

"Go, Ilya. If you stay, you'll lose Saber."

Arturia frowned angrily, deeply offended and ready to fight, but her Master stopped her. The girl knew that Scáthach was right.

"Just go, child." The warrior queen spun her spears and stood in a fighting position, the bloodlust started to slowly grow in her voice and eyes. "I can't just die, remember? And we have a lot of things to discuss with the gold-clad clown here."

"Yes, it will be a very interesting… exchange of thoughts."

Gilgamesh raised his hand and the sky above their heads glowed with the golden light, coming from the wide open Gate of Babylon.

* * *

"Shit, my shield is useless here!"

"It's not a normal fire, it's like a dragon's breath," Ilya noticed and wiped the sweat of her forehead. "So hot…"

The wall of flames was higher than the gate itself. The fire was raging freely on the temple grounds and whoever unleashed this hell, was an expert of spreading terror and destruction.

"We're going to break through, don't worry." Tohsaka took a few jewels out of her pocket and measured them in her hand.

"Rin… what do you want to do exactly?" - Rider asked calmly, crossing his arms. He was like the voice of reason in this whole madness. "Just charge in without any plan? Have you decided at least if you want to talk or fight?"

"Of course we're going to help Sakura, not fight her!" – Shirou declared immediately. "Right, Tohsaka?" But when Rin did not answer, he added hesitantly: "Tohsaka? Hey, Tohsaka!"

"Of course! And hey… stop yelling at me! I was just preparing protecting spells, so you won't burn to death, you moron!"

"Good." Siegfried seemed pleased by this answer and he summoned his stallion. "Now come, you both. I will carry you through this."

"How?" Shirou did not look convinced. He looked at Tohsaka questioningly, but she only shrugged in response.

"It's not the first time I'll be crossing the ring of magical fire, you can trust me."

So they did and climbed clumsily into the saddle. Rin glanced at Ilya, but the girl smiled and waved her hand, showing them that there's no need to be worried.

"Go on," she said and exchanged a meaningful glances with Berserker. "We'll be right behind you."

Grani watched the flames with his big eyes wide open. This horse was truly fearless... or he just trusted his master this much.

_It's just like the last time, friend,_ Siegfried thought, caressing the grey hair of his mount. _The beautiful lady awaits on the other side. Well, kind of. It's just like Scáthach said about this strange syndrome, right?_

And they just jumped into the fire, still not able to understand the difference between courage and stupidity.

* * *

Jeanne was sitting on the pile of rubble like on some kind of grotesque throne. She greeted her guests with a cruel smile. Sakura was lying on her lap, sleeping, innocent like a child. There were no signs of Zouken, the old magus must have been already annihilated, wiped out from the surface of the earth.

"More sinners came to be judged. And our beautiful playthings…" Ruler gently stroke his Master's hair. The girl did not react in any way. "You were right, Sakura, this Shirou is nice too."

"What have you done to Sakura?" Shirou stepped forward but Berserker grabbed his clothes and pulled the boy back.

Just in time. A strange figure, made of shadow and the Grail's mud, almost reached the young magus and torn him to pieces. Berserker's twin blades were now keeping the monster at bay.

Other shadow familiars were stopped by the swords of Rider and Saber. Although Siegfried was not the only one to fight them, they seemed to totally ignore other Servants. It was obvious that someone had ordered them to surround Rider and corrupt him as soon as possible.

"Nothing. She's resting after the execution of the worst sinner." Jeanne stood up, leaving Sakura on the improvised throne. "She was very excited, that's why the flames are so high and strong tonight!"

Rin could not believe her own eyes. This madness was just too great to bear it and remain sane. She rushed to Rider to help him in this hopeless fight…

Someone grabbed her hand and stopped her before she could reach the mud and shadow.

"Ar-cher?"

"Don't." He looked at Rin with a serious expression and pointed at the Command Seals on her hand. "Use this."

"Right. I won't let him be corrupted!"

The magic of not one but two Command Seals was needed to make Rider invulnerable to the curse, at least for some time. Angry Ruler narrowed her eyes and waved her flag, determined to bend Siegfried to her will at any cost.

"Oh no!" Ilya quickly realized what's going on. The girl's face turned pale and she ordered Saber with a spell to retreat immediately. "Get out of here, Saber! Rider, look out! It's the charm of the Dragon Witch!"

It was too late for Siegfried, he could only watch helplessly, how the dragon's blood within him submits completely to Ruler's will. He lost control of his own body and the blue circuits on his chest burst with a bright, dazzling light.

"No, no, no!" Rin tried to help, but Berserker held her tight and did not let her move even a step forward. "What's happening?"

"She's opening his magic circuits by force," Ilya explained, her eyes wide open. Just one glance at Rider was enough to tell that it was an extremely painful process. "What an enormous energy!"

"So… Let's start, shall we?" Jeanne walked up to her new puppet and gently stroke his long hair. "You need to work on your new nickname, Siegfried 'the Servant Killer'!"

The energy started to gather around the Ether and Rider raised Balmung high above his head, his arms were obviously acting against his will. The sword was drawing mana through corrupted Jeanne directly from the Grail and it was clear that the upcoming blast will highly surpass even Saber's Excalibur.

"Rin, run!" – Siegfried shouted desperately. "I'm sorry, I won't hold it any longer. Hurry up!"

"Come, Rin." Berserker grabbed Tohsaka's arm and pulled her behind him to the exit.

"Shirou, run, now!" Ilya shouted, while heading at full speed to the gate in Saber's arms.

The boy glanced one last time at unconscious Sakura and clenched his fists, utterly frustrated.

"I'll come back for you, I promise!"

He ran. Someone used a Command Seal or two, magic filled the air around them. And at this moment a massive wave of pure energy came through the temple grounds, destroying everything on its way.

* * *

"Are you all right, Master?"

Shirou woke up on the cold stones, his chest and clothes were all wet with blood.

But it was not his blood. Assassin shielded him with her own body, taking the power of Balmung's blast on her uncovered back. She was in a truly pitiful state, almost completely burned and shattered, the beams of leaking mana were raising from her wounds like a steam in the cold air.

"I'm fine, but you…?"

She shook her head and smiled.

"It's nothing." Her fading voice was full of sadness. "I'm sorry, Master. I couldn't save Sakura. I couldn't kill the priest. I failed you."

"No." Shirou's eyes became embarrassingly wet and his voice trembled. "You've saved me. More than once. But why?"

"This is what Servants do, Shirou." The way she spoke his name was full of affection. "Please thank the warrior queen for the Command Seal. She sent me here."

"I will. And I… will miss you."

"I will miss you too, Shirou."

Assassin stole the one last kiss from her beloved Master and she vanished quietly, with a peaceful smile on her face.

* * *

Despite his situation, Siegfried breathed a sigh of relief. Rin was safe and unharmed, he could feel it through the remnants of their bond. Berserker guarded Tohsaka and Rider was sure, that he would keep her safe no matter what.

So he did not hurt his allies… yet. Good. There was still some time until he'll be completely changed into an evil beast. The dragon blood was burning his veins from the inside, but he still had faith and was determined to resist the charm as long as possible. He was the one to slay dragons, not to become one of them. He will not give up so easily.

After all, there were heroes out there who promised to stop him before he could do any more harm.

_I believe in you,_ he thought and a thin smile brightened his face.

He looked around. Everything was burned to the ground and the girl in white dress was sleeping in the centre of this mess on a grotesque throne. Next to her stood Jeanne, a terrifying and extremely beautiful figure, with a flag dyed crimson.

Her cruel laugh echoed through the ruins, but when Siegfried looked at her face, he saw tears flowing down her cheeks and an unbearable pain in her golden eyes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dears, thank You for comments and support!
> 
> Important info: this story will have more than one ending. Let's go with the general one first, and then… You'll see. ;)
> 
> Next time we will see our dear Scáthach in action.


	14. Broken World

_"_ _Aren't we all broken here?"_

_"_ _Maybe you're right…_ _"_ _Her smile was sad and defiant at the same time._ _"_ _Sometimes this whole world seems to be broken."  
_

* * *

Drawing runes around such a large area, while dodging a multiple weapons, coming from all possible directions, was not an easy task. But Scáthach was not an ordinary warrior and at this moment she could easily repel or avoid all of Archer's missiles.

They were too close to the Grail to risk any unexpected damage. Maybe the King of Heroes has chosen their battlefield with an intention to cause as much chaos as possible? Or rather he planned to corner his opponent and force her to call Berserker to fight alongside his Master?

No, Berserker was not allowed to come near Archer. Scáthach did not even want to know, what would happen, if two world-destroying Noble Phantasm collide. She was sure, that her Servant will obey the order to stay away from this duel.

Gilgamesh only laughed at her efforts to raise a protective barrier around their battlefield.

"Truly… to worry about the others in your situation? Shouldn't you be focused more on surviving right now?"

"A victory at the cost of others is not a true victory. You should know such things, as a fellow guardian and king. Have you forgotten about your role and started to only think of yourself?"

Even if Archer felt offended, he did not show it; a thin smile, full of superiority, stuck on his face.

"Oh? So, like this pathetic Saber, you see a path of kingship as a duty, a service to humanity?"

"No, a king should not serve his subjects, if this is what you mean. But he should show them possibilities and let them choose the right way."

"A foolishness," he gave her a snort of disgust. "A king knows better what is good for his people."

"Even if he truly knows it, he should teach them, not force them to obey. If they have a choice and still choose to follow you, you're a good king."

Gilgamesh started to laugh, so much, that his arms were shaking uncontrollably. He stopped firing his weapons for a moment to regain his composure.

"Are you mad? The heavens are above the earth not without reason. You don't apologize to ants for stepping on them – so gods and kings don't apologize to humans for their decisions."

"I've killed some gods and kings." Scáthach shrugged. "There's nothing special about them. And you should know, that a true leader don't trample the grass, but helps it to grow. If you don't know even this simple truth, you're like an ignorant child to me."

Archer was about to response, but something visibly disturbed and annoyed him. He turned around and glanced at the temple behind, a pure hatred in his gaze.

"Tch… That woman! She dares to command me!"

What was even worse - it seemed that only Scáthach's barrier was blocking the power of the Ruler's Command Seals. Archer found this fact humiliating as hell.

"Hey, your enemy is here!" The warrior queen did not want to tarnish her reputation by a surprise attack and faced him fairly, now in the close range. Gilgamesh had to use one of his swords to block their attacks. Only a few blows were needed to tell, that he could not possibly match her fighting skills.

"Why have so many weapons if you can't truly master even one of them?" – Scáthach asked and suddenly accelerated. She managed to break through his defense and could already see a spark of surprise or fear in Archer's eyes.

"You're so sure about it?" He seemed to quickly recover from the shock. "Enkidu!"

Using all her abilities to escape, and runes to bend the space around her body to make the chain miss the target, she was able to avoid first blows. But she couldn't run eternally and she soon ended immobilized, defenseless like a fly, caught in the spider's web.

"I must acknowledge your skills, witch," Gilgamesh said honestly, playing with a strange key in his hand. "You are powerful enough to have this honor. You will die from my greatest treasure. Ea."

* * *

In the forest on the other side of the lake, where Rin and Shirou were hiding for now, licking their wounds after the last Balmung blast, Berserker suddenly stood up and stared at the temple. He was visibly nervous, or even torn apart by some serious dilemma.

"Archer?" Tohsaka walked up to the Servant, alarmed by his unusual behavior. "Scáthach is in danger?"

He nodded and tensed even more. Just looking at him was making the girl feel insecure.

"Why don't you go to her? Don't worry about us, just go."

He did not answer, but, judging from his worried expression and hesitation, the situation had to be extremely serious out there. And the reason to stay must have been even more important.

"Archer?"

"I can't."

"Why? A Command Seal binds you or something?"

"More. I can't. Trust me."

Rin sighed heavily and shivered, when a strange source of mana appeared on the other side of the lake, out of the blue, like coming out from another dimension.

"What's happening?" – Shirou asked, trying to see any details in a strange blaze, which lightened up the whole mountain with some dark colors.

"This is a Noble Phantasm? Seriously?" A mix of admiration and fear in Tohsaka's eyes. "It's so powerful, that it's actually scary…"

Rin stared at Archer, like she was trying to find the answer on his expressionless face. But he only kept watching the distant lights, with his black eyeball twitching nervously, determined to obey Scáthach's order to the very end.

* * *

The energy was twirling, like around some gigantic drill, tearing the earth and heaven apart.

It was not the full power of this blade, not even an important part of its full capacity. But it was already terrifying.

Scáthach stared right into the eye of the cyclone with a calm expression.

_Is it enough to kill me?_

Perhaps it was. Perhaps her deepest wish will be granted just now. Perhaps she has finally found the one to kill her.

Then why she wasn't smiling?

Right, she's almost forgotten the most important thing. This was not the end she dreamed of. Not the right person. She will die, someday, in a way she'll choose for herself. This golden tyrant was not the savior, but the enemy, who should be taken down at all costs.

She lowered her head, gathering magical energy and trying to find the best combination of runes to free herself from this irritating chains. The time was running out quickly, too quickly…

"Enuma Elish!"

"Excalibur!"

"What?" Scáthach raised her head again, just to see Saber, who was standing proudly on the way of this unstoppable hurricane, and tried to block it, even if just for a moment, with the wave of energy of her own holy sword.

"I'm giving you all I've got, Saber!" – Ilya shouted, the red circles of Command Seals reached Arturia, increasing the power of the blast. But it was still not enough, they all were about to die here.

"How boring." The King of Heroes gave Saber a nasty smile. "Get out of the way, filthy, corrupted mongrel."

_She will not make it, there's no way._ Despite this thought, the warrior queen was still fighting with the chains. _And this naïve child... She shouldn't have been here, it's not her fight. She's just like her stupid brother, who always plays the hero._

Arturia groaned painfully, feeling that she's already reached her limit. But she bravely withstood the pressure, too stubborn and proud to let go.

"Good, Saber. Just hold on a little longer…" A familiar but unexpected voice sounded behind and the second holy sword joined the clash. "Balmung!"

"Rider?" Ilya blinked. "How? Why?"

"It's not important as long as he saves your skin, right, child?" – The warrior queen did not intent to reject any help in this desperate situation.

"You're totally right, teacher!" A smudge of blue energy materialized next to her, taking the form of a Servant. "But… hey! It doesn't look like kicking Archer's ass, you know?" Lancer put on a brave face, as usual. With a combination of runes and strikes of his spear, he managed somehow to free Scáthach at last. "Not at all."

"Oh? Maybe this Master of yours is not such a coward to let you come here at last?"

"It's… complicated." Cú Chulainn chuckled. "Let's just say that this cute little girl over there is stubborn enough to make him forget about my insubordination."

Scáthach only smiled in response. She was bleeding from many minor wounds, looked pale and tired, but it only made her bloodlust grow stronger. She was angry at herself for almost giving up in the most important moment. She'll never make that mistake again.

* * *

The moment, when three great Noble Phantasms clashed, was hard to describe. The ultimate weapon wielded by the King of Heroes was so powerful, that the two strongest swords from the Western legends were able only to neutralize one blast. Archer was far from going all out, yet still both swordsmen were left exhausted and Saber, who wasn't connected to the energy coming straight from the Grail, had lost almost all her mana in this single attack.

"How dare you...?!" Gilgamesh was truly mad right now, because some mere mongrels have just ruined his fun. "You will not survive the next one."

"There won't be the next one, King of Heroes," Scáthach said, spinning both of her spears so fast, that human eyes could not keep up with their movements.

"You'll never learn, won't you?"

"The same trick won't work twice." Her red eyes were shining brighter than before. "Come, Sétanta! Watch and learn!"

A wide, wild smile appeared on Lancer's face, when he joined his teacher in battle.

"Finally! Remember when we used to cause hell together?"

"Of course. And I've waited far too long for a chance to do it again!"

* * *

Finally, the three red spears stroke, one by one. The first one was to distract the enemy and stop him from using his Noble Phantasm or this problematic chain again. The second one, strengthened with runes, was to break Archer's defense – to partially dispel or just weaken his golden armor, for a moment needed to land the next blow.

The final hit belonged to Scáthach. With Cú Chulainn covering her back, she was at last able to fully use her speed and she fell on Gilgamesh like an angry panther. It was impossible to avoid her last attack. The spear of the warrior queen found the heart of the golden Servant and pierced through his core.

"It seems that I've miscalculated… again," the King of Heroes said, losing more and more energy with every single breath.

"You don't pay attention to people," Scáthach explained. She was breathing heavily, exhausted after their long and fierce exchange of thoughts and blows. "That's why you actually don't know anything about your enemies… or even friends."

He chuckled faintly and chocked with blood.

"I've had only one friend… and it was more than enough."

Something in his voice made Scáthach cool down in an instant.

"I can see it now," she said, without pity but also free of hatred towards him. "You're truly broken. And you're trying to hide your endless despair under this gigantic ego of yours."

Archer's eyes narrowed dangerously, but after a short while he just smiled peacefully.

"Aren't we all broken here?"

"Maybe you're right…" Her smile was sad and defiant at the same time. "Sometimes this whole world seems to be broken."

When Gilgamesh finally lost his material body and vanished into the cloud of mana, the warrior queen at last let herself show some weakness and fell unconscious into Saber's arms.

* * *

Cú Chulainn stared at Siegfried, who was watching Archer's end with an enigmatic expression on his face. When it was over, the Dragon-Blooded Knight dispelled his sword and prepared to leave, like nothing unusual had ever happened.

"Wait!" Lancer stopped him, not sure, how to react. "Why are you here? What's the meaning of this?"

"My job is done." Rider shrugged. "Ruler couldn't control Gilgamesh through your barrier, so she wanted him dead. And I volunteered to help you, that's all."

He turned his back to Cú Chulainn, clearly having nothing more to say. But everyone, who knew him well, could feel a lot of emotions in his ostensibly calm voice. There was a joy of seeing them again and fighting on their side, along with regret, that this is their last time together.

It was the perfect moment to end the problem before it even started, having Siegfried here, surrounded, unarmed and without the witch to mess around with her spells. Just like they promised to help each other, back then, on the roof of the Tohsaka mansion…

_He knows, what I'm thinking_ , Lancer realized and clenched his teeth. _He allows me to kill him. No, it's more. He asks me to do it._

As if to confirm this theory, Siegfried glanced at Cú Chulainn over his shoulder and tossed his long hair aside to expose his back. The vulnerable spot was now clearly visible even from a distance, like a shooting target, inviting Lancer to throw his weapon.

Lancer knew that it has to be done and he tightened the grip on the spear until his fingers hurt. But… he couldn't strike. He just couldn't do it.

_This is wrong. He's a hero, not a wild animal. And I'm not an assassin to cowardly stab a warrior in the back! Even if…_

Even if it has to be done.

If Rider was disappointed by Cú Chulainn's decision, he did not show it. He just slowly walked away and dematerialized just beyond the reach of a spear throw.

* * *

Back on the temple grounds, Siegfried could feel the power of Command Seals in use, filling the air with the characteristic tension. But no pressure followed the sensation, no ultimate order to obey. Assassin and Archer were already gone, so if those spells were not for him…

_Saber? Too bad I'm late._

Ruler was walking there and back again, next to the remnants of the main building, a ravel crunched under her feet. When she acted also as a Master, she was far more dangerous than any Servant, who participated in this war. She could feel the presence of Siegfried nearby, but ignored it completely, mumbling something under her breath and making plans for the next battle.

Maybe she just trusted her own powers or her obedient puppet this much?

"Jeanne."

She turned around to face him and at this moment Balmung pierced her chest with an extremely strong strike.

Ruler only coughed painfully, spitting blood, and reached out her hand to the treacherous Servant. Her golden eyes were looking at him with a strange mixture of anger, disbelief and pain, but there was also a promise of vengeance in this fading gaze.

"I'm sorry." Rider did not allow her to use magic again. He pulled his sword back, tearing apart her chest even further. He though that there was ridiculously much blood inside this small, artificial body. Her knees surrendered and she was about to fall, but Rider held her limp body, not letting it hit the ground.

Minutes were passing in silence, but he waited patiently, enduring the heavy gaze of the dying girl and almost bathing in her blood.

Then she moved again, at last, and it was different than before.

"Siegfried…" Her eyes were like two bright amethysts now and the tears started to flow freely, when she clung to him. "I know what she's done. I'm so sorry…"

"Don't be, Jeanne. Your heart is still pure, as always."

She needed a moment to calm down. After a short while, she wiped the blood from her face and took a deep breath.

"This body will recover soon and she'll be back," she said simply, her voice sounded stronger and more decisive than before.

"I know." Rider's calm demeanor helped Jeanne a lot to make her decision.

"This is why I have to destroy her completely."

"Yes."

"So you must go, away from me, or you'll be…"

"It's all right, I'll stay with you." He gently kissed her forehead and stepped back. "I'll be right here."

"But you will…"

Then she saw his smile and understood. Siegfried's magic circuits already barely resembled the ones of a Servant and a spirit of an evil dragon hovered over him like an ominous fog. These were most likely his last moments of sanity in this humanoid form.

Jeanne nodded and drew her sword. Rider was watching the girl with a calm expression, standing right behind her, as he promised. She kneeled before the blade and said calmly:

"O' Lord, I entrust this body to you…"

Her eyes were closed now, her voice strong and sweet. This was the prayer of the holy virgin, coming straight from her heart, and nobody could deny the noble beauty of this scene.

Soon the flames arose around both Servants, bringing them a purification they desired.

No more words were needed. Holding their hands, they smiled one last time, sure that neither the Dragon Witch, nor her pet, will be a threat to their friends and this world anymore.

* * *

Sakura woke up with a feeling, that she's been sleeping for over a year or longer. It was like someone had poisoned her body and imprisoned her mind in some extremely long nightmare.

"Jeanne? Shirou?" She stood up slowly; her body was numb and cold after a restless lethargy.

She could not sense Ruler or Assassin anymore. But Shirou was not so far away, safe and in a company of someone well-known to her, with no evil intentions. Good that he had an ally, when Medusa was no more there to guard him. Sakura smiled, not so worried anymore.

She looked around and shuddered on the view of a total destruction of the temple. What kind of charm was strong enough to make her sleep during such a catastrophe?

Finally, the girl noticed a simple golden cup, which was standing on the ground, totally out of place, in a circle of the burnt ground.

"It's almost full." She picked the vessel up and hugged it like a caring mother. "I see. So it's too late."

* * *

Rin was slowly walking through the forest, with her head lowered, so sad that it was painful to look at her. She was staring blankly at her own hand, on a pale skin, where her last Command Seal was carved not so long ago. What kind of a Master was she, to lose her second Servant - and a friend – in such a short period of time? But the worst in this situation was an overwhelming feeling of emptiness. Until she lost Siegfried, she had no idea, how many warm and positive emotions, especially the sense of security, were coming from him through their bond.

Berserker was walking right behind her, visibly weakened but not damaged in any way, and it was a clearly good sign. Scáthach must have survived this impossible fight, but she barely managed to supply her Servant with mana right now.

The last in their miserable procession was Shirou, lost in his thoughts and cursing his weakness, that made him left Sakura alone in this madness.

"Rin!"

A familiar figure was standing on the road between the trees, evidently waiting for the girl to come closer. His body was awfully damaged and on the verge of collapsing, but Tohsaka would not mistake that faint smile for any other and ran to this Servant without hesitation.

"Siegfried!" She still couldn't believe her own eyes. "But how?"

"Well, you're not the only one who uses the jewel magecraft here, Master." He glanced at the Ether attached to his sword. The magic stored within the crystal was fading rapidly and not much remained from Rider's material body, already destroyed by the flames of Jeanne's Noble Phantasm. Yet he still managed to survive this long, just to say goodbye to his Master.

"Siegfried… Will you stay with us? Maybe if we make another contract…?"

"No, it's too late. My core is shattered. It's a miracle that I'm still here. Or rather Jeanne did not want to truly hurt me." He sighed, but there was no sadness in his words, rather relief. "Besides, there's no need in this modern world for someone like me. A reckless guy, who always seeks troubles and ends up killing everything in his way."

"Don't say that, it's…"

Rider raised his hand to interrupt her. Not much time left for him, so it was his turn to speak now. But he only sighed again and murmured:

"Damn, I screwed up again."

"What?"

"In the end I couldn't do anything for myself. I haven't even said what I wanted to say."

"So do it now. What are you waiting for?"

He hesitated, like he was trying to find a courage to speak up his mind. It was the end, after all, his last chance to do as he pleases.

"I've just wanted to say, that… I love you, Rin. As a Master, as a friend and as a wonderful woman. Thanks to you, my heart is not hollow anymore." His smile, so calm and full of affection, was priceless. "Take it, please. It's for you."

He put a ring on her finger. It was the simple, golden ring, but it looked ancient and Rin could easily detect a powerful magic emanating from its surface.

"Thank you. For everything. But what's this?"

"You'll see back at home. Take care, Rin!" He smiled and kissed her hand, but she could barely feel his touch. It was only a mist already, just an echo from another time, dispelled by the single blow of the wind.

Tohsaka turned around and looked at Berserker, tears burned her eyes and her lower lip trembled.

"Rin?"

"I couldn't save him. Why he had to die like this again? Sacrifice himself to avoid conflict… Always repeating the same story. This is so unfair! Why it's always like that, Archer? This world is broken or something?"

He had no answer for those questions – all he could do was to stand still, hold the girl tight and let her cry.


	15. The Answer

THE LAST CHAPTER

 _"_ _The look on your face! This hatred! I've never felt so good before. Is this how pleasure and happiness look like? Tell me!"_

* * *

The Tohsaka residence has changed into a field hospital. They all came here, exhausted and wounded, to calm down and regain their strength before the final battle.

Scáthach, who was resting until now in Lancer's arms, regained her consciousness just a moment after they had entered the house.

"Let go off me, I'm not yet dying, you vulture!" She punched his pupil in the face. "I need some rest, that's all. Damn, why he has to be Berserker class, so draining…" She touched her forehead, like checking the fever. "Rin, I'll go to the basement and use the summoning circle to restore my mana flow, ok?"

Tohsaka only nodded and sat on the stairs. She smiled, remembering, how Rider had repaired them.

"That guy… He should have told me sooner."

"Oh, come on, Tohsaka…" Shirou sat next to her, his shirt was still red with Assassin's blood. "Just one look at you and this 'Berserker' is enough to tell, what's between you two, so he just did not want to interrupt and put himself into friendzone. He had no chance to win you anyway, right?" The boy blushed and nervously ran his fingers through his hair, scared by Rin's strange gaze. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have been commenting, I'm not an expert or anything. But, as a guy, I can tell you, how we act, when we care. And tell me, honestly… Something would have changed, if you knew sooner?"

She looked at the simple golden ring on her finger, thinking, analyzing her own feelings, and slowly shook her head.

"No. You're right." She sighed. "You can't always reciprocate feelings. It doesn't work this way."

But, even after realizing it, she did not feel any better. Not at all.

Berserker came from the kitchen and gave them two cups of hot cocoa. He was wearing some normal clothes, not even able to materialize his armor now. They took it gratefully.

"Where are you going?" – Rin asked the Servant, who started to slowly climb up the stairs.

"Ilya," he said simply. "Still crying."

Right, Saber ended this fight totally corrupted and on the enemy's side. They did not really know, where she was now or what were the orders that Ruler had given to Arturia, but Rin was somehow sure, that she's somewhere near the Grail.

"What a night… Four Servants have died and our alliance is crushed, with only Berserker still here, but unable to fight."

"And Lancer?" - Shirou asked, raising one eyebrow.

"We don't know what are the plans of his Master." Rin only shrugged. "He can attack us at any moment. Our situation could be even worse?"

"Well, it could, I suppose. With combined forces of Ruler, Rider, Saber and Archer against us, we would only sit down and cry."

"Right. But the cost of this so-called victory was still too heavy."

They remained silent for a long while, lost in their thoughts.

"Do we have any chance against black Saber?" Shirou stared at the cup in his hands.

"I have no idea. Maybe with Berserker at full strength… Under Caster's control, with her almost unlimited magic resources, he was able to stand against Saber pretty well. But if she's now connected to the Grail, it won't be easy anymore. You've seen, what strengthened Balmung blast did to us, right? It will be the same with Excalibur, if not worse."

"Rin!" It was the Scáthach's voice coming from the basement. "Come down here, please! This is… Well, you'll see."

 

* * *

"Strange, isn't it?" Bazett smiled and checked the bandages on Maiya's chest. "You were taking care of the wounded and unconscious me for a long time. Now it's my time to return the favor."

But the woman only grimaced, staring blankly at the ceiling.

"You owe us nothing. Your Servant is the one, who pays for our help," she said with no emotion, but Bazett was somehow sure, that she was angry on herself for being useless, when Kiritsugu needed her the most.

Fraga knew this feeling well, knocked out at the very beginning of this war and left with a deep debt, that probably could never be paid. She supposed to be the one to save Cú Chulainn, not the opposite. But a true hero will probably always act like a hero, even long after his death, and it just can't be helped.

"I see." Bazett gave her a sad but gentle smile and cleaned her wounds. "Then let's just say, that I'm doing it from the heart."

"So you're a truly strange woman," Maiya said, finally looking at her face.

"I suppose so." Bazett laughed. She started to really like this proud and brave woman. "It means that we have something in common, don't you think?"

Maiya did not answer, staring at Fraga with a strange expression, like she was trying to read her true intentions. Finally she just smiled and it was a warm, honest smile – the first smile of their newly formed friendship.

* * *

Rin's eyes were wide open - a pure shock in her gaze, when she entered the basement.

"So this is the ring…"

"…of the Nibelungs? Yes." Scáthach sat on the nearest pile of gold. The whole room was shining from the treasure gathered here. It was only a small part of the original dragon's possession, but still enough to let them all literally do nothing for the rest of their lives.

"Wait a minute!" Shirou did not look overwhelmed by the riches. "In the legend, this ring was cursed, right? So now you'll become greedy and die the most miserable way imagined? You may even turn into a dragon or something!"

Behind their backs Berserker chuckled dryly.

"Red dragon Tohsaka. Scary," he said, making even depressed Ilya smile a little.

"I… don't think so." Rin checked the ring with her magic again and couldn't find anything suspicious. "Siegfried did not curse me. Why would he?"

"Well, maybe because you rejected him?"

"Shut up!" The girl turned red and almost punched Shirou in the face. "He's not like that, he would never hurt us."

"May I take a look?" Tohsaka nodded and handed the ring to Scáthach, who checked it too. "No, it looks fine to me."

"Maybe as a Noble Phantasm it's free from the curse?"

"I don't think that it works this way." The warrior queen crossed her legs and almost laid on the gold, like a dragon lady in her lair. "I have a nice theory, but… well. It seems that we will never know. So you're going to keep it, Rin?"

They all looked at Tohsaka, waiting for her decision. She ignored the gold, focused on this single ring, trying to remember every detail of their last conversation with Rider.

"Yes," she declared finally. "I trust Siegfried. Cursed or not, he wanted me to have it, so be it."

A sound of a doorbell brought them all back to the reality. Rin opened the door and almost fired a _Gandr_ at Kiritsugu and two pale women with him – the most unexpected guests she could imagine right now.

"Easy, we're not here to fight. We are wounded and tired too." Emiya dropped a cigarette and raised his hands, showing, that he had no guns with him, only a folder with some probably important papers. "We need to talk."

* * *

 _"_ _You must know that this Grail is most likely corrupted. It will not grant your wish. You will not save anyone, but kill many. Too many" –_ that irritating nameless Archer class Servant of Tokiomi Tohsaka said ten years ago. And now Kiritsugu was facing him again, he was somehow sure about it, despite his unusual look.

_Why he's so attached to Ilya? And how did they turned him into Berserker? I knew Tohsakas were good, but… to manipulate the system like that is extraordinary._

Although interesting, it was not truly important right now. It wasn't even the most shocking news for today – Kiritsugu was utterly surprised, that this strange woman, who was now sitting next to him, was not a Servant, but the queen of the underworld in the flesh.

Emiya sighed and took a map of Mount Enzou out the folder.

"So, the corrupted girl is no longer on the temple grounds," he said and showed them pictures. It seemed that his cameras have not been detected by Sakura, probably she did not even bother to hide anymore. "But her aura was still around, so we kept searching and finally found this place." It was an entrance to a cave under the mountain, a strange black figure was guarding it. "Saber is there, so this is probably the only way inside. My advice is to keep the guardian busy and sneak into the cave to deal with the girl." He noticed a strange look, that Shirou gave him at the 'deal with' part. "There will be a lot of shadows there, maybe some other guard dogs, and the priest is probably nearby, but it should be fine, if we work together."

"Why are you helping us?" Tohsaka could not find enough good will to truly trust him.

"Because Lancer will not be able to defeat Saber, Kotomine and shadow familiars alone," he replied simply. "That's why we need to cooperate to finish them all off and, if necessary, settle the score between us later."

"We will cooperate. But under one condition." Scáthach's red eyes pierced Kiritsugu, making even him shiver unwittingly. "You will give your last remaining Command Seal to Tohsaka."

"What?! No. No!" Rin stood up, she looked truly scared. "No way, I'm the unlucky one here, I've already lost two Servants, so no! No, no, no!"

"Why?" Emiya was calmer than Tohsaka, he just wanted to know the reason.

"Isn't it simple? We have only two Servants left, so we must use their full strength, don't you think? Ilya is the best one to handle Berserker and Rin is the most compatible with Lancer." Scáthach looked at Bazett, who was only listening to their arguments with a strange expression. "His original Master would be my first choice, but now she's useless, just like me."

Bazett nodded calmly, there was no reason to get angry or oppose the warrior queen. She was not mean, only said the undeniable truth.

The two women exchanged their gazes, feeling a strange bond forming between them. It was a kind of a mutual respect and understanding, but not without rivalry.

 _So, there are some true warriors in this modern world, after all_ , Scáthach thought. _No surprise that Sétanta likes her._

"I'm in." Ilya smiled and Scáthach handed her Command Seals to the girl with no delay. Berserker formed a pact with her and visibly regained his strength. He looked like he's been summoned again a moment ago, or has just recovered after a long sickness.

"I guess I have no choice but to accept your terms." Kiritsugu shrugged and Rin sighed heavily, having no more excuses.

"Good." Scáthach smiled; freeing Cú Chulainn from this guy meant much more to her, than a simple tactical advantage. "So Berserker will keep Saber busy and Lancer will escort the group through the tunnel."

"Why like this?" – Shirou asked the question, which bothered not only him.

"Because we need a tough Servant to withstand Saber's rage and a fast one to kill the shadows as soon as possible," she explained calmly. "Lancer will join Berserker later. And you must reach the Grail before the last Servant will be killed. Trust me."

"And you?" Bazett gazed at Scáthach, who was visibly knowing or predicting something they could not yet see.

"I've already said, that I'm useless now. I will be only a burden to you." The warrior queen said with a thin smile and reacted to their questioning gazes with a sigh. "I will stay here, with other invalids, wishing you all luck."

* * *

"You were right," Ilya said, when they reached the cave. "Saber's here."

She was standing right before the tunnel, guarding the entrance, like a statue of an ancient warrior, black and truly magnificent. The amount of magical energy in her circuits made Rin swallow.

"Splendid," she said and took a few steps back unwittingly, staring at Berserker. His face was emotionless as usual, but he was really focused this time, analyzing the situation and thinking of the best possible course of action.

"So... which one of you will be the last offering to the Grail?" Saber slowly raised her head to meet their frightened gazes, her deep voice echoed through the cave like a roar of a black dragon.

No one answered, but Berserker stepped forward, projecting his favourite twin swords.

"I see." Arturia smiled and picked up her weapon, now black, with some red ornaments on the surface of the blade. "Just like ten years ago, then? So be it."

"We should go now," Kiritsugu said, feeling the waves of mana, which started to gather around both Servants.

Tohsaka nodded and they all proceeded through the tunnel. Saber ignored them completely, staring at the last Servant, who needed to be crushed to fill the Grail. Only Ilya hesitated, determined to stay with Berserker, as a true Master should.

"Go, Ilya." He gave the girl a calm smile.

"He's right," Rin said firmly, trying to hide, how worried she really is. "You are his emergency exit, you will save him with a Command Seal, if needed. That's why you should separate now."

"I know, but…!" Ilya clenched her fists, visibly frustrated, and took a deep breath. "But you are not allowed to die, understand?"

"Yes, Master." Berserker smiled, when a red circle of energy from a newly activated Command Seal reached him, but he didn't dare to look at the girl, observing Saber with her sword raised above her head. Arturia was ready to charge.

At last Ilya ran to her father, who was waiting nearby, and Rin followed her with Azoth sword in hand.

"Archer… Remember, you're just buying time, ok?" She looked at him over her shoulder one last time. "Don't push yourself too hard."

And she fell on the ground a few meters further, when the first Excalibur blast has shaken the mountain and almost cut off their way back on the surface.

* * *

They have not come far, when first shadow familiars appeared. As expected, Lancer had a lot of work with helping their team go forward. They were moving really slowly, cursing the passing time and shaking with every sound of Saber's attack.

As if that was not enough, another attack came from behind. Those thin blades belonged to the Executor, Kiritsugu was sure about it. It was an obvious challenge and Emiya accepted it with a cold smile.

Another Black Keys came and Kiritsugu answered with a gunfire. Finally two deadly enemies faced each other to finish something, what had started a long ago.

An echo of another Excalibur blast has shaken the mountain.

"That Saber…" Kotomine said with a cruel smile. "She's not holding back, you were perfectly matched back then. So what's happened now, Kiritsugu Emiya? Why you ruin this moment by not giving all you've got?"

Their clash was fierce and full of dirty tricks and no one could get a significant advantage. But Kiritsugu started to wonder, why he's been acting so defensively right now. He was too old for this? Or it was the illusion of teamwork, that made him so weak?

He was going to pay dearly for this moment of inattention. Not fast and alert enough, he suddenly ended up on the ground with a deep wound on his thigh.

"I expected much more from the one, who's just like me." Kirei was truly disappointed, he mechanically crushed Emiya's knee to immobilize him. "Seriously, what's wrong with you?"

The answer came suddenly in the form a sword-shaped familiar, created from a single white hair. Ilya must have ignored her father's instructions and came back to help him. Two Black Keys, thrown almost nonchalantly, destroyed the familiar in a blink of an eye.

"I see. This girl…" Kotomine turned around, using a Command Seal to shield his back from the bullets, and knocked Ilya out with a single surprise punch. "I will not let her spoil our duel anymore."

His Black Keys, like the claws of a wild beast, have plunged into Ilya's body and almost tore it apart with a single move. The girl shouted painfully and stopped moving. Kirei was not even looking at her shattered body anymore, focused on his enemy. He just threw Ilya away, like a broken doll with no more value.

* * *

Berserker has lost focus and turned around, truly panicked.

"Ilya!" – he shouted and ran into the tunnel without hesitation.

"You will pay for turning your back to me!" Saber did not give him a moment to rest and used his inattention to cut him. The strike was powerful enough to make him fall on the ground, but he somehow managed to roll over and escape all her fierce blows. He headed to his Master at full speed, but another blast of energy stopped him halfway.

"You won't go anywhere!"

It was obvious that he will not win this fight without his Noble Phantasm. Every blow of this black knight could be fatal, he was balancing on the verge of death from the moment he had entered the cave. It was hopeless.

_I'm sorry, Ilya, Rin… I think that my time has finally come._

Bleeding from many wounds and clenching his teeth in frustration, he decided to keep fighting to his last breath.

* * *

Kiritsugu dropped his gun, now empty and useless, somehow managed to stand up and walked up to Ilya.

 _There is still hope,_ he thought, _she has Avalon inside_ …

But Saber wasn't connected to the girl anymore. Will this artifact have enough mana left to keep the girl alive?

It did not look good, she was fading in his arms with every second, watching Kiritsugu with her red eyes blurred, not even able to say goodbye.

"How does it feel, Kiritsugu Emiya? Tell me, I really want to know!" Kirei was smiling like never before. "For me it's wonderful. The look on your face! This hatred! I've never felt so good before. Is this how pleasure and happiness look like? Tell me!"

_I have one grenade left. And nothing to lose anymore._

Kiritsugu only put unconscious Ilya gently on the ground and slowly walked up to Kotomine with his hands in his pockets, so close that he could just punch the priest in the face right now.

 _"_ _Kiritsugu, I was wondering… Do you really think that crushing wishes and lives of other people, not to mention a cruel sacrifice of the ancient heroes during the process, could bring anything good?"_ – this irritating Archer of Tokiomi Tohsaka said ten years ago. _"Don't you think that power, which demands such things, must be evil to the core?"_

Now, facing the overjoyed Executor, stained with blood of this innocent child, Emiya has found the answer.

 _Better late than never_ , he thought with a thin smile.

"Just go to hell, where you belong."

And he pulled the pin out of the grenade.

* * *

All shadow familiars had vanished in a single moment. Rin, Shirou and Lancer exchanged surprised gazes.

"Don't tell me that the last Servant has just died?" Tohsaka was truly worried, feeling that Berserker had some serious troubles. "Lancer..."

"Of course, I'm on my way." He grabbed his spear and smiled to the kids one last time. "Don't let yourself be killed, ok?"

"You too."

They did not waste the time anymore and ran into the main cave at full speed.

"Too bad that you're late." Sakura welcomed them with a sad, painful smile. She was barely visible from the centre of a corrupted mass, which was forming around her and spreading the black mud around. "The cup is almost full and the Evil be born soon to this world, according to the humanity ultimate wish."

* * *

"Sorry it took so long, buddy." Lancer materialized between half-burned Berserker and black Saber, who was preparing her next, and probably final, blow. "You're not quite bad to survive this long."

Berserker did not answer, only exhaled loudly with relief and vanished. Cú Chulainn was not really sure, if he just changed into spirit form or disappeared for good.

"So, Saber…" An energy gathered around him was the sign of a Noble Phantasm coming. "I came to keep my promise. Remember?"

Arturia gave him a cold smile, but a strange light appeared in her eyes. The oath, which they had made that memorable evening, was hard to forget for a hero like her. But still she decided to answer not with words, but with her own Noble Phantasm.

"Too slow. Gáe Bolg!"

The red spear pierced Saber's heart with ease, because she did not even bother to block or dodge it.

* * *

The Runes may be used not only for spells, Scáthach knew it, and she had a special set for divination. The signs were carved in bones of a sea monster, which she had slay long ago, and strengthened with her own blood. Resting in Tohsaka's place and waiting for the end of the world to come, the warrior queen reached out for three Runes and focused to read their meaning.

The first one on the left symbolized the past. It was Eihwaz, the sign of death. The meaning of this one was obvious, it was the Grail War and all its victims so far.

The one in the middle, which symbolized present events, was empty. Scáthach smiled, thinking, how cunning and wicked the olds signs could be. It was Wyrd, the Fate, which has two general meanings. It could imply that no one really knows, what will happen, or just the opposite: that everything is going according to the greater plan, and the final outcome is already decided, inevitable…

She sighed and looked at the last and the most important Rune, the future. It was Rad, the Wheel. This one also had two meanings. It was the Wheel of Fortune, the order of things, the beginning and the end, the snake, eating his own tail in an endless cycle.

But there was also a bright side of this sign, a little light in the darkness, their only hope. Scáthach grasped the bone and smiled, believing that these kids will find the right answer.

Because the second meaning of the Rad rune was Reincarnation.

* * *

**Seeking Redemption**

NORMAL END

* * *

There was a lot of energy accumulated in Azoth sword, enough to kill a Servant. Especially the abnormal and unborn one. And Sakura, as its grotesque 'mother' and the source of its 'life', was connected to the Grail's core to the point, that it was impossible to separate them anymore.

Rin clenched her teeth and raised the blade, a pure determination in her gaze.

"Tohsaka?" Shirou quickly realized, what Rin indented to do, and stood in her way. "What are you doing? We were supposed to help!"

"It's too late, she must be killed. Step aside."

Shocked by her cold voice, Shirou projected his shield, ready to protect Sakura to his last breath.

"I won't let you. You have to kill me first."

It was too short to call it 'a fight'. The young Matou was skilled and his shield was pretty powerful too, but it was not enough to stop a top magus like Rin. A determined top magus, ready to fulfill her duty and win no matter what.

"Out of my way!" She did not want to truly hurt him, so she only dispelled his shield and knocked him out with a spell.

With the last obstacle defeated, Rin broke through the mud and looked Sakura in the face. The girl was crying in silence, unable to fight anymore.

"Forgive me, Sakura." And she pierced her sister's heart with the magical blade.

But the Grail did not vanish, like Tohsaka had expected. More mud came out from the hole in Sakura's heart and kept spreading around, like a flood through a broken dam. Now the Grail was not only corrupted, but also out of control - with its core damaged, it was like a nuclear reactor on the verge of explosion.

* * *

"So it was just another hopeless dead end?" Berserker shook his head and sighed heavily. "Just like any other timeline to which I'm summoned in this corrupted form."

He was in a truly pitiful state, with one arm literally torn apart and his upper body partially burnt. Rin could not tell, if he was just bleeding or rather dissolving, barely able to keep his material form. It had to be the Independent Action skill to keep him materialized after all those events…

But he was dying. The fact, that all his sanity returned, was the ultimate proof.

Tohsaka could not say anything, tears were already in her eyes, when she gazed at the black mud under her feet and thought about all the corpses she had left behind to reach this point.

Berserker sighed again.

"I guess that it's time to use it at last. Good, that I'm weakened right now, it can still work somehow. Well, at least it's worth trying." He concentrated on gathering the rest of his energy for the Noble Phantasm. "Take the boy and leave, Rin. I'm going to wipe the whole mountain off the face of the earth. But I can give you no more than five minutes to evacuate. Go."

"Wh…? How?" Tohsaka was shocked, but she did as he asked and took the knocked out Shirou with her. She did not want Berserker to die, but there was nothing she could do anymore and he would not change his mind no matter what. "Archer… if you knew from the beginning, that it would end like this… then why you've been fighting?"

He looked at her with a wide smile.

"Because every timeline with you is precious for me," he said, like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

* * *

"Congratulations," Lancer said bitterly, or more likely spat it in her face. "You've won the Grail War."

Rin was kneeling on the ground on the edge of an enormous hole, where Mount Enzou was just a few moments ago. Berserker's Noble Phantasm looked and worked like a black hole, an ultimate destruction, and he barely managed to control it. Even while using only a small amount of Berserker's remaining mana, it totally destroyed the Grail, the mountain and all Fuyuki ley lines, leaving the town's aura 'sick' and without magic.

Cú Chulainn just turned away and vanished, having nothing more to say.

Rin was staring empty at the place of the catastrophe, touched by the curse and not even able to cry anymore. She won and some of them survived, but there was nothing glorious about this so-called victory. Nothing at all.

It was an undeniable truth – she had their blood on her hands and nothing will ever change this fact.

After the end of the war, Rin Tohsaka went to London to finish her education in the Clock Tower. She did well, but she couldn't stay, finding no real pleasure or sense in magecraft anymore. To be precise – she could not find any sense in anything from that final day.

The price for her 'victory' was just too great. All the feelings she rejected, all the wishes she unintentionally crushed… All the people, who used to trust her and now were dead, were haunting Tohsaka in her dreams. There was no way to ever repay them.

She spent all the gold for charity, helped to rebuild Ryuudou Temple and engaged herself into the campaign to prevent next Grail Wars to happen ever again. It was still not enough to fully paid her debt.

The hole in her heart became deeper, and was still growing with every month. She could not bear this overwhelming emptiness anymore. She was hollow, a walking machine, sleeping and eating, but nothing more. Just like she could see it in Rider's and Berserker's memories – it was something, which cannot be cured.

Maybe Siegfried cursed her after all? Or maybe it was Archer, for letting him die twice for her sake?

Well, if this is what they want, she'll accept her fate and choose the path of the Hero of Justice in their place.

Scáthach refused to teach her, seeing only an empty shell with some broken ideals, not a warrior. But she also did not see a real threat in Rin, so she let her be and follow this destructive and insane dream as long as she wanted.

Shirou refused to talk with her ever again. She would gladly accept death from his hands, but he ignored her desperate request, not interested in vengeance, but in the Justice alone, already on his hopeless path to become another corrupted anti-hero.

Tohsaka sought redemption at war, constantly moving from one battlefield to another, always choosing the most dangerous and insane tasks, ready to die in the process. Soon she became famous for her heroic deeds, but it was not what she truly wanted and cared for.

In reality, all her actions were like a strange kind of suicide, extended in time. Rin knew it, but she still didn't care. It was not enough, it will never be.

In her life she killed many but saved even more. Still not enough. She kept fighting after her death, as a part of a mindless force to prevent human race from destroying itself. Her characteristic red coat and a ridiculously big sword on her back were feared all around the world, but no one survived to tell the story of her merciless kills.

Maybe she will find what she's looking for. Maybe it will happen someday, in another time, another place.

* * *

**The Wish of Destruction**

GOOD END

* * *

There was a lot of energy accumulated in Azoth sword, enough to kill a Servant. Especially the abnormal and unborn one. And Sakura, as its grotesque 'mother' and the source of its 'life', was connected to the Grail's core to the point, that it was impossible to separate them anymore.

Rin sighed, still hesitant, what to do. Maybe there was still hope?

"Tohsaka, let me try to handle it and guard my back, ok?" Shirou smiled and looked at Azoth sword in her hand. "You will use it, if we fail."

She nodded, somehow happy, that she doesn't have to bring death to her own sister.

Shirou went through the mud and reached Sakura, visibly happy because of their reunion.

"You must fight it, Sakura. You can make it."

"But it hurts so much, Shirou…" The pain in her voice made Rin shiver.

"Trace on," the boy said and let Sakura hide in his arms.

A magical shield appeared around them, like a safe cocoon, free of the black mud, and the corrupted girl could at last focus on defense.

It was a battle of strong will and Sakura eventually won this duel. But she managed only to cut Avenger off, disorientate him a little and force to search for another host.

"I'm sorry." She lowered her head and clung to Shirou. "I wasn't strong enough."

"You were stronger than we all together, Sakura," the boy looked at her with affection and kissed her gently.

At this moment, when Saber died, the Grail literally exploded with more black mud, broke the magical shield and buried both Matou kids under the avalanche of its corrupted content.

* * *

Tohsaka took a deep breath. She made her decision to destroy the Grail even at the cost of her own life. She stared at her last Command Seal and smiled.

"Find peace, Lancer," she said, freeing him from her service. It was cruel and meaningless to hold him here longer. All other Servants were most likely dead and their job had been finished.

She slowly walked up to the Grail's core with a blade in her hand.

"Rin, don't. It will explode." Berserker said calmly. "It's over."

He was in a truly pitiful state, with one arm literally torn apart and his upper body partially burnt. Rin could not tell, if he was just bleeding or rather dissolving, barely able to keep his material form. It had to be the Independent Action skill to keep him materialized after all those events…

But he was dying. The fact, that all his sanity returned, was the ultimate proof.

Tohsaka dropped the Azoth blade, but also shook her head in anger and disbelief.

"So many deaths, all for nothing! I refuse to accept it! Masters and Servants, who have died in this war, wishing no harm to this world, deserve the second chance!" Tears filled her eyes, when she shouted with all her might: "I wish they all could come back to life!"

The mud under their feet started to boil with some scary sounds and the smell of a powerful magic filled the air. The energy was gathering to create a miracle.

"Ooops." Rin stepped back, realizing, that, as the last Master standing, she had just told the Grail her wish and now nothing will be able to stop the upcoming destruction.

But Archer was smiling, not even partially as scared as Tohsaka.

"What a mess you've made just now, Rin. I guess it can't be helped." He whispered something and smiled even wider. "So it's true - a wish of a Servant will be granted as well."

Rin looked at the Grail and the evil entity within it. She noticed, that it started to shrink and collapse, like a withering flower. Even the mud retreated from beneath their feet and returned to its source.

"I see. If it wants destruction, why won't let it destroy itself?" She sniffed, even sadder than before. "But Archer, you will…"

He was disappearing anyway - his wish clearly did not include his survival in this world.

"Have faith, Rin. And wait for me."

Still crying, she clenched her fists, but she said firmly:

"I will."

Berserker nodded and vanished into nothingness with a calm smile.

* * *

Days were slowly passing by and Tohsaka kept her promise to wait. She told her mother, that the war has not yet finished, and kept expecting the unexpected, full of hope.

But the lonely life in this empty house, filled only with some painful memories, slowly murdered her enthusiasm and she started to feel more and more depressed.

One day, while shopping, she spotted a new bookstore in the town. The sign caught her attention with an unusual creature drawn on it and with even more strange name: Secondhand Bookshop 'The Gorgon'.

She entered the shop and smiled, amazed by the special atmosphere of this place. The smell of old volumes made her feel nostalgic. She remembered her father and all the books that he had given to her, making her slowly fall in love with knowledge and magecraft.

There was another client inside, the woman with a strange, almost blue hair, and a very familiar voice.

"Caster?" Rin turned around, not sure, if she's dreaming or if she has just lost the remnants of her sanity.

But the mysterious client just passed by and left, hugging their new cooking books and whistling cheerfully about the dinner she'll make for her beloved.

Rin shook her head, almost sure, that it was only her imagination, until she faced the salesman – another beautiful woman with an extremely long violet hair.

"A-Assassin?!" Rin covered her eyes instinctively, but Medusa tried to calm her down, truly embarrassed.

"It's all right, Miss Tohsaka, my mystic eyes are gone." Ex-Assassin smiled gently and put the pile of old books on the counter. "It seems that we all are just ordinary humans now. Even Sakura and Shirou don't have their magic circuits anymore."

"Wait, they are here?" Rin's eyes widened, she almost dropped her bag, totally shocked.

"Of course," she answered, a true happiness brightened her calm face. "We live together in the Matou residence. Sakura is trying to restore the good name of the family. I'm sure that she'll be happy to see you. It's thanks to you we're all here, after all."

"But… It means th…!" Running to the exit, Rin almost rammed a random kid in the doorway, the one with a suspiciously familiar face. He was also a foreigner, his eyes were red and his hair had this shade of blonde, which seems to be golden in the sunlight.

"Good morning! I want to buy the most valuable book you have here! But it has to be truly precious!"

Tohsaka did not hear the whole conversation. Her heart was beating like a crazy, filled with a new hope. There was still a chance…

And it was not the end of surprises for today. Someone stopped Rin, while she was running down the street back to the mansion.

"Hey, Young Lady! Long time no see!"

There was no way to not recognize this voice. A characteristic blue hair, red eyes, shining with usual wild joy, and his wide grin, made Rin smile and hug him.

"Cú Chulainn!"

"Of course! No one else!" He chuckled, visibly pleased by this warm welcome. "By the way… have you seen Scáthach or Bazett? They have to be somewhere…" - he looked around, running his fingers through his long hair - "…shopping together, I guess. Well, if they meet Maiya or Ilya, I will be standing here till midnight."

"No, I haven't." A pure happiness on Rin's face. So they've all returned, right? "You must visit me soon and tell me everything. All of you!"

"Sure, we're going to see you before the departure to Ireland. Bye!"

She waved her hand goodbye and ran home even faster.

Finally Rin reached the house, and noticed the letter lying on the floor near the doorway.

"From France? I don't know anyone from France… Or…?" She was about to open the letter, but the familiar smell made her drop everything and run up the stairs in a great hurry.

There was only one person, who could brew her favourite tea so perfectly, that it smelled like this.

"Archer!" She clung to him suddenly, ignoring the hot drink, which he was pouring to the cups right now. "Welcome home!"

He seemed totally surprised, but managed to keep his balance, put down the jug and held her tight, with a warm smile on his face.

"Like I promised, I'm home, Rin."

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank You for reading!  
> There will be one special chapter after the good end (titled: "The Postcard from Paris") and some bad ends. If you have any requests, which fragment or character should be extended or included in specials, just let me know.


	16. Special Chapter: The Postcard from Paris (After the War)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've received many comments and PMs from You and it seems that You like CG Tohsaka from neutral end – so be it! The next story focused around her is coming (or a series of short stories, I'm not sure yet).
> 
> First part will take place in Europe, in the age of Norse gods and dragons. Rin will have a special, unusual task, and a chance to repay a part of her debt. Search for a title "Firestone" if You are interested!
> 
> Also there will be a few special chapters in this story, as well as in "The Only Thing You Can Change" (yes, I have not abandoned it). And… "Soldier Girl" and "Forging Iron" will be updated soon, so stay alert!
> 
> Thank You for reading and staying with me for so long – You're the best!

_"We're a family now. A big one and crazy, but unquestionably a family."_ **  
**

* * *

"Yay, Europe is so big! And the buildings here look so old and different!" Rin was leaning out through the open window of the rental van, admiring the views of a French countryside.

All her friends and former participants of the Fifth Grail War were here with Tohsaka. They gathered on the airport to reach the Jeanne's farm together. Kiritsugu was driving, without hurry, to let them watch the landscape as long as they want.

"With all this gold you could just rent a private plane for all of us, Rin," Archer said, looking through the window with his stylish sunglasses put on. "And be careful, you're going to fall out."

"Meh, but it would not be as funny as traveling together. But I wish we could see more thinghs in Paris, not just the airport."

"We can explore the city properly on the way back." Kiritsugu chuckled and looked at his daughter through the rearview mirror. "What do you think, Ilya?"

But Ilya was not surprised by the view at all, she was more interested in some mobile game. Gilgamesh kept instructing her and even mumbled something like: 'girls don't know how to fight and play games', but he regretted it immediately, after two punches in the head – one from Scáthach and second from Arturia.

"Ilya, don't you think that you're getting too old for these games?" Shirou winked cheerfully, teasing the girl. She wasn't a homunculus anymore, just an ordinary human, like them all, so she was aging normally and already has grown several centimeters.

"Look at all these horses! So beautiful!"- Rin shouted again and leaned out of the window so much, that Cú Chulainn had to forcibly pull her back.

"Ah..." A nostalgic smile appeared on Arturia's face. "I guess we are almost there. We're going to take a ride on the horseback, right?"

"Sure." Bazett smiled. "With pleasure. And you, Maiya?"

"I've never ridden a horse before…"

"Don't worry. We're going to teach you," Medusa declared suddenly. She did not even took her eyes off a book.

"But no racing, Saber." Scáthach wagged her finger. "It will end with a sword fight again and I'm not going to let you kill each other for such a stupid reason."

"And what reason would be rational enough to let them fight to the death, teacher?" Cú Chulainn gave her a wide, mocking smile.

"Food, I guess," Gilgamesh commented with an innocent expression.

"Shut up." Arturia punched the kid again.

"Hey, don't hit the children!" Sakura protested, but she was smiling anyway. "It's cruel."

"Look, it's Siegfried," Medea noticed, disrupting their dispute about educational methods. She was looking through the window, safe in Kuzuki's arms. "He's changed, there are no dragon marks on his skin anymore."

A single man on a white mount was galloping through the grasslands to open the gate for them. A big dog was accompanying the rider, barking cheerfully with every crazy jump through the grass. This view was so familiar and so fitting to the surroundings, that they could feel like the time has stopped in this place.

"So good to see you again!" Siegfried smiled and waved his hand to greet them, when the car had stopped. "Please proceed this way, it's a straight road to the house. Jeanne is waiting for you. I'll take a shortcut and join you soon."

Kiritsugu nodded and fired the engine up again. Rin watched Siegfried, who was heading now to the orchard, and her eyes got unexpectedly wet.

"I've missed them too." Archer reached out his hand and gently caressed Tohsaka's hair. "We're a family now. A big one and crazy, but unquestionably a family."

* * *

"This is sooooo cooooool!" Rin were running around like a crazy. "It looks like an open-air museum here!"

A very old house built of red brick, wooden stables and fences, even a well was there. Chickens were walking on the traditional yard and a big, lazy cat was watching them from the veranda. And a big dog was following Siegfried everywhere, waving its tail and demanding attention from his beloved master.

"The house was like this when we bought it." Jeanne looked so fresh and happy here, back in her homeland and free of war at last. "But the stables and other buildings - Siegfried has built them all himself. He can be very stubborn, you know?"

"I had nothing better to do anyway." The ex-Rider winked cheerfully to Rin and took her baggage to the room.

"It's not true." Jeanne laughed. "There's always something to do on the countryside."

"Whoa, you have your own lake?" Cú Chulainn also came inside and put Bazett's and Scáthach's bags of the floor. "I could see a river from the van, not far away."

"Yes." Siegfried smiled and threw a can of cold beer to Lancer. "With some big trouts, lots and lots of them. And the season has just started."

"Awesome." The wide smile on his face was priceless.

* * *

"They've tried to make me join the local council, but I'm not really into it." Siegfried sat on the bench next to Sakura, who started asking him about various things. They were resting with Shirou under a big old pear tree at the edge of the orchard. "Being a blacksmith in this region, full of stud farms and guesthouses, is important enough. Jeanne is the one to rule, so she has a lot of respect here."

"I was wondering…" Shirou yawned, the calm atmosphere on the farm made him give into laziness. "It's been a long time since you started to live here together. Why are you still not married?"

Siegfried frowned and lowered his head.

"Well, I proposed to her. Three… no, four times already."

"Oh." Suddenly Shirou started to feel sorry for picking up this topic. "Do you know why is that?"

"She said that I'm a pagan and I should be baptized first. So I said that there's no problem for me and then she got angry."

"W-why?" Shirou could not even imagine the reason.

"She said that it's not that simple, and I must find it in my heart first and such… And when I said that I'll try everything to make her happy, she yelled at me even more. 'Only a pagan to the core can take it so lightly!', she shouted." He sighed heavily. "And when I said that with her by my side I can believe in anything, it made things even worse. I guess it can't be helped."

"Oh, dear, you're giving up so easily?" Scáthach came out of nowhere and she clung to Siegfried's back. "I can help you a little with this matter… for a kiss."

"Are you drunk?" - Siegfried asked but did not even try to free himself from her grasp. "You smell like a distillery, you know?"

"A little drunk, maaaaaaybe." The warrior queen chuckled like a coquette. "So what? We have a deal?"

She sat on his lap, teasing him even more and poking his cheek, just like the first day they met.

"I guess we can."

"Good. But the kiss comes first." Her lips were already too close to his to turn back, so he just went with the flow. "What was that? You call it 'a kiss'? Don't make me laugh! Now I know why she rejected you."

"Is that so?" His eyes narrowed dangerously, a blue light within them told the warrior queen that he accepted the challenge. "Then try this."

Siegfried held Scáthach tightly, so she couldn't make a single move in his arms, and corrected his previous mistake. It was a long, passionate kiss, that made all watchers applaud and whistle with amusement.

"Much better." She licked her lips and stood up lightly, visibly pleased. "Just wait, I'm going to dance on your wedding party soooooon!"

Siegfried watched her go with a strange expression, somehow sure that her enthusiasm could mean only some serious troubles.

* * *

"There you are, hiding from me!" Scáthach entered the kitchen like a boss. Jeanne and Rin were talking there, about literally everything, like the best friends use to do. "Tell me, Sweetie... Why do you torment Siegfried, huh? The guy is looking at you like a faithful dog, can't you see it? What's wrong?"

"There's something around him." Jeanne blushed, totally surprised by this direct question. "The pagan aura. The old gods still have their eyes on him."

"The old gods are long dead, Sweetie." The warrior queen sighed and grabbed a bowl full of strawberries. "I've killed some of them myself, you can trust me."

"What's your point?"

"Siegfried is not a pagan anymore, he's not even the same person. Just like you, Sweetie." Scáthach smiled, strawberries were disappearing inside her mouth one by one. "You both were purified in the flames back then, right? His sacrifice was accepted and here's the proof." She grabbed Rin's hand and showed Jeanne the ring. "It's not cursed anymore, it was cleansed with your Noble Phantasm. There are no old gods around Siegfried and no dragon blood within him anymore. So stop being unfair and take what is given to you, Sweetie."

Jeanne blushed, visibly touched by her arguments.

"You're right. Probably."

Both Scáthach and Rin rolled their eyes, slowly losing patience.

"You still has any doubts, seriously?" Tohsaka sighed. "The sole fact that he's still here, waiting patiently for your decision, is the proof that he cares, right?"

"Sometimes I think that he's still here just because he has nowhere to go…"

"A guy like him?" Scáthach snorted. The strawberry juice ran down her chin. "Sorry. It's just too funny. Believe me that many women out there would attack him on sight, like some hungry wolfs. If you're really not interested, just tell me, I will take him for myself."

Jeanne and Rin looked at her with disbelief. She only shrugged in response.

"What? He's almost my type. Aaaalmooost. I guess he's too calm and kind for me." Scáthach laughed and poured some wine into three glasses. "Don't get mad at me for being drunk, better join me! It's the Midsummer Night after all!"

"Hey!" Jeanne stood up, now really angry. "After all you've just said, you suddenly come up with a pagan festival!"

"Does 'folk festival' sound better for you, Sweetie?"

"Not at all! It's the _Fête de Saint-Jean_!"

"Whatever. Still the same for me."

Rin had no comment for their little quarrel, she just facepalmed really heavy.

"They sent me here to tell you that the grilled fish is almost ready and… Oh." Little Gil stood in the doorway, but, when he saw them three with a wine, like a witches preparing a spell, he sensed troubles and retreated quickly. "I'll be going then."

The three women laughed at the view. This reincarnation of Archer was truly nice and cute, nothing remained from the egoistic tyrant they all used to know.

"Any idea why he's the one who reincarnated as a child?" – Rin asked, slowly sipping her portion of wine.

"It's evidently teacher's fault for calling him 'an ignorant child' during their fight." Cú Chulainn smiled, he was standing near the door with his hands in his pockets and with an extremely happy face. "Come, ladies. Otherwise they'll eat your supper. It's delicious."

* * *

The space around the grill became a battlefield as well. Archer took possession of the grill and successfully managed to defend it against both Cú Chulainn and Siegfried, along with their priceless cooking advises from distant past. Then Arturia interrupted the process, trying to steal some partially grilled fish, just because it 'smelled too good to ignore it'. Shirou tried to reconcile them, but they only yelled at him, so he had to retreat into Sakura's arms. And at this moment, Ilya took the opportunity to sneak up and took a juicy piece for herself. But she could not enjoy her prey for long, because Siegfried's dog snatched the fish from her hand and got away to the barn.

Bazett was spending almost all her time with Maiya and soon Medusa joined their quiet circle. Even Kiritsugu, visibly drunk, seemed to be unexpectedly cheerful tonight. He has finally found a common language with Cú Chulainn – as fellow smokers, the only ones in this company, they both had to hide in the orchard with their cigarettes. And Medea with Kuzuki were nowhere to be found; their new life seemed to be like an eternal honeymoon.

Siegfried needed a moment of peace and he sneaked out from the party. He was sitting in silence on the bridge, watching reflection of the the moon on the calm surface of the lake.

"The moon is so bright tonight," Jeanne said quietly and sat next to him. She hesitantly grasped his hand. "I'm sorry."

"For what?"

"For making you wait this long. It wasn't fair. I'm sorry."

Siegfried raised one eyebrow, suspecting that it has to be the work of Scáthach and trying to figure out, what kind of arguments the warrior queen had used to make Jeanne change her mind so easily.

"You were only listening to your pure heart, it's nothing to be sorry about."

"No, it's not like that." Jeanne blushed. "You see… I've never imagined to have a normal life, to think about family, about being a wife. I don't even know if I can make it. I was jealous of Tohsaka too… And so scared, that I started to make those ridiculous excuses and pretend, that I don't care, but… The truth is that my heart belongs to you for a long time."

His gaze was full of affection, when he looked at Jeanne, his hair seemed to be silver in the moonlight.

"So… it means that you…?"

"Yes." She blushed even more. "And you…?"

"Yes."

They were sitting for a while, embarrassed, not knowing, what to do with their hands and eyes. And then they kissed, not for the first time, but the first time like this... like never before.

"Oh, this is the magic of the feast of St John!" – Jeanne noticed with a smile.

"This is the magic of the Midsummer Night!" – Siegfried said exactly at the same moment.

"Whatever." After a second of an awkward silence they both burst out laughing.

* * *

_This is a very strange picture_ , Rin thought and picked up the photo frame from the fireplace. _A total chaos._

There was the Eiffel Tower in the background and the clear blue sky above their heads. They barely managed to fit in the frame and a random person, who took this picture, was clearly an amateur, but it didn't matter. It was a truly priceless memento of this amazing trip and the time they spent together in France.

Rin stood in the centre, with a wide smile, and Archer, a little reluctant, was right behind her. Lancer placed himself on Archer's right, leaning on his shoulder, with a wild grin, one eye closed and two fingers raised in a sign of a victory. Siegfried stood right next to Cú Chulainn and he looked like he was secretly laughing at them all. Jeanne, in Siegfried's arms, next to Rin, was looking at Medea and poking her in the shoulder. Ex-Caster was so busy kissing Souichirou, that she hasn't even noticed the photographer.

Sakura was standing on the left from Rin, holding her sister's hand, with a warm, loving smile. Shirou was so close to her, that it was difficult to separate the pair with just one glance. Medusa was behind them, truly gorgeous, with her long hair and a mysterious, calm smile.

Next to Shirou, Ilya, with an innocent, angelic smile, made a prank to Gil-kun by adding him the bunny ears on the photo. The boy crouched in the foreground in the pose of a professional model, but Ilya ruined all his efforts with her two fingers. Scáthach was also in the foreground, stretched out in a little provocative manner, like she had seen somewhere in a fashion magazine. Also Arturia was forcibly put into the first line, so small, that she would be barely visible otherwise. Her angry face was softened by a delicious snack, which she was chewing, some crumbs and a little bit of sauce stuck to her chin. Kiritsugu stood right behind his daughter, with Maiya and Bazett, who were making funny faces together.

Rin smiled, as always when she was watching all those happy faces on the picture. It was their very personal postcard from Paris.

It was just like Archer said. They loved each other as a family. A big one and crazy, but unquestionably a family.


	17. The Dark Kingdom - BAD END

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dears, as I promised, here's the first from the multiple bad ends of the story! I hope You'll enjoy it!

 

He has never wanted such power. He has never needed riches. He has never dreamt of ruling the world.

But all of those things came to him anyway.

"Come to me, come through the flames! Together we'll raise the flag of Justice!"

Her charisma, her stunning beauty, her clear voice... made his heart beat faster. Strange as it may seems, but so long after his death, he has finally felt alive.

"I was so stupid… No more apologizing!"

He smiled viciously, feeling the unholy energy running freely through his enormous dragon circuits. And the maiden in black smiled back at him, not yet aware of what she's just unleashed.

* * *

The war ended very quickly. The Grail was still functioning as a giant generator, supplying remaining Servants with mana. Jeanne ordered Gilgamesh to kill all the enemies and then commit suicide. After finishing Scáthach, he did what Ruler wanted, he even has sent Berserker into oblivion with his Noble Phantasm, before the mad Servant could react. Only blackened Saber left alive, because she joined the winning party willingly, captivated by the vision of the true Kingdom of Justice.

The rules of this new world were very simple – an absolute obedience or an immediate death. But those, who obeyed, were not complaining. It was a tyranny, of course, where strength and devotion were the most desirable values, but the sense of justice of the Royal Couple was unquestionable. People feared them and loved them at the same time, overwhelmed by their power, but also safe under their protection.

Their ideals were spreading across the land in the flames of never-ending war. And now another great army has gathered, ready to conquer the last sources of the resistance.

"Here they come!" – someone shouted and the excitation of the crowd reached the limit.

They came on the back of a giant black horse, which looked more like a dragon than a normal animal, both in shining black armors, glowing with a mysterious magical light. The Queen was obscenely beautiful, delicate and strong at the same time. She was well-known for her ruthlessness and the fact, that she goes berserk sometimes and sets the entire districts on fire.

It's hard to believe, but the King was even more terrifying, because of his calm attitude and self-confidence. The crest on his chest was now glowing with a wild red light, not a calm blue. His eyes were golden and full of hidden cruelty, of absolute domination. This frightening gaze was the one of a dragon.

"Hail to the Dragon King!" – all the troops shouted with one voice and kneeled simultaneously. Even partially masked black general Arturia acknowledged his terrifying power and bowed with a mysterious smile.

King Siegfried helped his Queen to get off the horse. Jeanne raised the flag and her speech began.

"Let the fire of our souls shine brightly and destroy our enemies! Let the flames purify the earth! Together we'll crush all resistance, we challenge the divine! In the name of Justice, we march forward!"

Their battle cry has shaken the surroundings. The Queen joined the King and they kissed passionately, making the audience applaud even more. Jeanne was the one to make the crowd shout ecstatically, while Siegfried was the one to silence it with just one gaze. Together, united by their common desire, they were unstoppable.

"Don't you think that we're going too far this time?" – Arturia asked the ex-Rider, suddenly near him. Siegfried couldn't see Saber's face, but he noticed a clearly provocative, sarcastic tone of her voice. "I bet that the Counter Force is readying its agents to deal with us."

"Let them come." He smiled widely. "It will be a wonderful fight."

And, even if their battle leaves the entire planet in ruin, he will regret nothing.

 

**Author's Note:**

> All characters and features belong to their rightful owners etc., etc.


End file.
